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New study reveals that smoking more than 20 cigarettes a day can damage vision. The research, conducted by a researcher Rutgers, was published in the journal Psychiatry Research. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 34.3 million adults in the United States alone currently smoke cigarettes and over 16 million live with a smoking-related disease, many of which affect the cardiovascular system.
The study included 71 healthy people who smoked less than 15 cigarettes in their lifetime and 63 people who smoked more than 20 cigarettes a day, who were diagnosed with tobacco addiction and who reported no smoking. attempt to stop smoking. Participants were between 25 and 45 years old and had normal or corrected vision, measured using standard visual acuity charts.
Researchers examined how participants distinguished contrast levels (subtle shading differences) and colors while seated 59 inches away from a 19-inch CRT monitor displaying stimuli, while researchers were simultaneously monitoring both eyes. The results revealed significant changes in the red-green and blue-yellow color vision of smokers, suggesting that consumption of substances containing neurotoxic chemicals, such as those contained in cigarettes, may result in an overall loss of the vision of the colors. They also found that heavy smokers had a reduced ability to distinguish contrasts and colors from nonsmokers.
Steven Silverstein, co-author of the study, said about this study: "Cigarette smoke is made up of many compounds harmful to health. It has been badociated with a reduction in the thickness of the layers in the brain and in brain lesions involving areas such as as a frontal lobe, which plays a role in the voluntary movement and control of thought, and a decrease in of activity in the area of the brain that processes vision. "
He added that previous studies have shown that long-term smoking doubles the risk of age-related macular degeneration and contributes to yellowing and inflammation of the lenses. "Our findings indicate that excessive use of cigarettes or chronic exposure to their compounds affect visual discrimination, thereby reinforcing the existence of overall deficits in the visual treatment of tobacco addiction," he said. he declared.
Silverstein explained that while nicotine and smoking have harmful effects on the vascular system, the study suggests that they also damage the blood vessels and neurons of the retina. According to Silverstein, the findings also suggest that research into vision-related impairments in other groups of people, such as people with schizophrenia who often smoke a lot, should take into account their smoking rate or consider independently smokers and non-smokers.
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First published: February 18, 2019 17:46 IST
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