Tobacco Articles: category mental

Smoking, but not past alcohol abuse, may impair mental function

kristin-caspers@uiowa.edu — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT

Men and women with a history of alcohol abuse may not see long-term negative effects on their memory and thinking, but female smokers do, a new study suggests. In a study of 287 men and women ages 31 to 60, researchers found that those with past alcohol-use disorders performed similarly on standard tests of cognitive function as those with no past drinking problems. The findings were not as positive when it came to tobacco, however. In general, women who had ever been addicted to smoking had lower scores on certain cognitive tests than their nonsmoking counterparts. The same pattern was not true of men, however, the researchers report in the March issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.

Effects of Alcohol- and Cigarette-Use Disorders on Global and Specific Measures of Cognition in Middle-Age Adults

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT

Conclusions: These results demonstrate few negative effects of alcohol-use disorders on midlife cognition, especially if current consumption is light. Differential susceptibility to the effects of cigarette use on cognition was found with women showing greater deficits in visuospatial abilities, processing speed, and executive-functioning abilities.

Cigs affect women's mental function

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT

A history of alcohol abuse does not appear to affect men and women's current mental functioning. However women who have ever smoked are not so lucky, the results of a new study indicate. US researchers looked at almost 300 men and women, aged 31 to 60. They found that those who abused alcohol in the past performed similarly on cognitive function tests as those with no past drinking problems. In other words, their previous alcohol abuse did not affect their current memory and thinking ability. However in general, women who had ever been addicted to smoking had lower scores on certain cognitive tests compared to their non-smoking counterparts. The same pattern was not seen in men. The researchers noted that the reasons for the findings are unclear. . . . Details of these findings are published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.

COLLIN: Smoking — the worst possible de-stressing tool

stephencollin86@gmail.com (Stephen Collin - El Hombre | BorneoPost Online) — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

In the report, Cooper recalled his earlier interview with Obama about smoking. Apparently Obama was a smoker and still is, although doctors have told him to quit for health reasons. When I came to Malaysia, one of the culture shocks I encountered was not how tall the Petronas Twin Towers are, but how much many Malaysians smoke. A Malaysian reading this might not understand why this would be a culture shock for me. However, it was because where I come from, the level of smoking is much lower compared to Malaysia. On top of that, there are tremendous differences when one imputes gender and age into the smoking paradigm. For example, there are a higher number of women smoking in Malaysia. . . . If you happen to roam around universities, you would notice an almost smoking-free environment, which is quite contrary to universities in Malaysia which host crowds of smokers dilapidating their lungs. . . . I believe smoking is a sign of the failure of society to deal with stress. As many smokers today are doing so in the name of de-stressing, I question whether society has failed to identify the best possible methods that have less detriments compared to smoking. I agree that the globalised world is becoming a field that nurtures stress and indeed there is a need to address this issue. However, I do not believe smoking is the best stress reliever. Having said that, I believe all of us are addicted to something when addressing the issue of stress. The tragedy of any stress reliever is the fact that it becomes addictive. Addiction takes away the will to control oneself since one surrenders to the greater power of the reliever. As a result, I believe the quest should be for at least the best relievers that are not harmful to the health of the user and his/her neighbour.

Duration of Smoking, Not Intensity, Associated With Reduced Parkinson's Risk

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

In their editorial, Dr. Ritz and Dr. Rhodes point out that the new study showed no association with the daily number of cigarettes smoked at any duration and PD risk. They also further confirmed previous observations that fewer patients with PD smoke, and those who do smoke for a shorter duration and quit earlier than controls who started smoking around the same age. "Together these observations can be interpreted as either neuroprotection from continuous and long-term exposure to smoke components or as reverse causation: patients who later develop PD are more successful in their attempts to quit smoking, an observation which has been attributed to prodromal PD reducing dopamine reward mechanisms before motor symptoms are noticeable," they write. "This dichotomy highlights a key issue in observational research: are observed risk (or protective) factors in fact contributing to disease occurrence or, rather, are they a proxy for an unmeasured factor, such as a 'PD personality' or genetics?" . . . Investigators studying the association between smoking and the reduced risk for Parkinson's disease (PD) have found that the relationship seems to hinge more on the duration of smoking than the amount smoked. . . . Asked by Medscape Neurology to comment on the findings, Marc Wasserman, MD, in Chicago, Illinois, said, "This is the kind of study that neurologists secretly cringe a bit about." It implies, he notes, that smoking in some way reduces the risk for PD. "The nice thing about this study is that it modifies that a bit," Dr. Wasserman said. "It suggests that years of smoking may reduce the risk of Parkinson's — not so much the actual amount of cigarettes smoked. In other words, you'd have to smoke for nearly 30 years to reduce the risk of developing Parkinson's. Hardly worth it, given that 30 years of smoking is far more likely to produce the relatively common and often fatal lung cancer rather than the relatively uncommon and often treatable Parkinson's." Interestingly, Dr. Wasserman adds, "If the study is right, it also suggests that nicotine patches or nicotine replacement is unlikely to reduce the risk of Parkinson's. You'd have to be on such a drug for about 25 years just to reduce the risk slightly."

After half a century of research on smoking and PD, where do we go now? ($$)

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

Smoking duration, intensity, and risk of Parkinson disease

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

Conclusions: This large study suggests that long-term smoking is more important than smoking intensity in the smoking-Parkinson disease relationship.

Years of Smoking Associated with Lower Parkinson’s Risk, Not Number of Cigarettes Per Day

ababb@aan.com — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

Researchers have new insight into the relationship between Parkinson’s disease and smoking. Several studies have shown that smokers have a lower risk of developing Parkinson’s disease. A new study published in the March 10, 2010, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, shows that smoking for a greater number of years may reduce the risk of the disease, but smoking a larger number of cigarettes per day may not reduce the risk. “These results could guide the development of studies on various tobacco components with animal models to help understand the relationship between smoking and Parkinson’s disease,” said study author Honglei Chen, MD, PhD, of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in Research Triangle Park, N.C. “Research to reveal the underlying chemicals and mechanisms is warranted; such studies may lead to a better understanding of the causes of Parkinson’s disease. However, given the many adverse consequences of smoking, no one would suggest smoking in order to prevent Parkinson’s disease.” The study involved 305,468 AARP members age 50 to 71 . . . Current smokers were 44 percent less likely to develop Parkinson’s disease than people who had never smoked. People who had smoked in the past and quit were 22 percent less likely to develop Parkinson’s than people who had never smoked. . . . People who smoked for 40 or more years were 46 percent less likely to develop Parkinson’s disease than people who never smoked. Those who smoked for 30 to 39 years were 35 percent less likely to have the disease than nonsmokers. In contrast, those who smoked for one to nine years were only eight percent less likely to get the disease. The risk of developing Parkinson’s disease did not change based on how many cigarettes a person smoked per day. Chen noted that studies have shown that smoking is not associated with a slower progression of the disease once Parkinson’s develops or a reduced risk of death, so he said there is no evidence to support the use of nicotine or other smoking-related chemicals in treating the disease.

Longtime Smokers May Find Protection From Parkinson's: Finding could help unravel mysteries of neurological and motor disease

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

In an effort to understand the relationship between tobacco smoke and Parkinson's disease, researchers have found that smoking for many years may reduce risk for the disease but smoking a large number of cigarettes a day does not seem to reduce risk. Previous research had suggested that smokers have a lower risk of developing Parkinson's disease. The finding, however, comes with a caveat. "Given the many adverse consequences of smoking, no one would suggest smoking in order to prevent Parkinson's disease," study author Dr. Honglei Chen, of the U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, said in a news release from the American Academy of Neurology.

Smoking years key factor in lower Parkinson's risk: SOURCE: Neurology, March 16, 2010.

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

Several studies have shown that smokers have a lower risk of developing Parkinson's disease. A new study shows that it's how many years of smoking a person has under their belt -- rather than how much they smoke every day -- that matters. "Smoking is bad for you and no one should advocate smoking just for prevention of Parkinson's," Dr. Honglei Chen of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, one of the study's authors, emphasized in comments to Reuters Health. But the findings could help researchers who are trying to figure out the underlying cause of the disease, Chen added. "Ultimately it's going to take a multidisciplinary approach to understand this question." Chen's team looked at 305,468 men and women aged 50 and older enrolled in the National Institutes of Health-American Association of Retired Persons Diet and Health Study.

Kinetics of brain nicotine accumulation in dependent and nondependent smokers assessed with PET and cigarettes containing 11C-nicotine

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

The results of the study, performed in 13 dependent smokers (DS) and 10 nondependent smokers (NDS), suggest that puff-associated spikes in the brain nicotine concentration do not occur during habitual cigarette smoking. Despite the presence of a puff-associated oscillation in the rate of nicotine accumulation, brain nicotine concentration gradually increases during cigarette smoking. The results further suggest that DS have a slower process of brain nicotine accumulation than NDS because they have slower nicotine washout from the lungs and that DS have a tendency to compensate for their slower rate of brain nicotine accumulation compared with NDS by inhaling a larger volume of smoke. For these reasons, smokers’ dependence on cigarette smoking, or the resistance of NDS to becoming dependent, cannot be explained solely by a faster brain nicotine accumulation.

New Insight on How Fast Nicotine Peaks in the Brain

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

Nicotine takes much longer than previously thought to reach peak levels in the brains of cigarette smokers, according to new research conducted at Duke University Medical Center. Traditionally, scientists thought nicotine inhaled in a puff of cigarette smoke took a mere seven seconds to be taken up by the brain, and that each puff produced a spike of nicotine. Using PET imaging, Duke investigators illustrate, for the first time, that cigarette smokers actually experience a steady rise of brain nicotine levels during the course of smoking a whole cigarette. The findings, scheduled to appear online in the Early Edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) the week of March 8, could lead to more effective treatments for smoking addiction.

Puff, puff, puff, nicotine rises gradually

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

Nicotine builds up gradually in smokers' brains rather than spiking after each puff, according to a study that might help point to new ways to help people quit smoking. Dr. Jed E. Rose of Duke University reports in Monday's online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that nicotine buildup in the brain was gradual over several minutes. Scientists have theorized that there is a spike of nicotine in the brain about seven seconds after each puff, but almost no measurements had been taken until now, Rose said in a telephone interview. "We were surprised to find that the rate of uptake was much different from what one commonly hears," said Rose, who directs the Duke Center for Nicotine and Smoking Cessation Research, a part of the university's School of Medicine.

Cigarette Smoking is a Risk Factor for Alzheimer's Disease: An Analysis Controlling for Tobacco Industry Affiliation : Volume 19, Number 2 / Pages465-480

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

To examine the relationship between smoking and Alzheimer's disease (AD) after controlling for study design, quality, secular trend, and tobacco industry affiliation of the authors, electronic databases were searched; 43 individual studies met the inclusion criteria. . . . The average risk of AD for cohort studies without tobacco industry affiliation of average quality published in 2007 was estimated to be 1.72 ± 0.19 (P< 0.0005). The available data indicate that smoking is a significant risk factor for AD.

Smoking prevents Alzheimer's? It depends who you ask: Papers by people with links to the tobacco industry play down the risks of Alzheimer's associated with smoking

science@guardian.co.uk ( * Ben Goldacre ) — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

If the media were actuarial about drawing our attention to the causes of avoidable death, newspapers would be filled with diarrhoea, Aids and cigarettes every day. In reality we know this is an absurd idea. For those interested in the scale of our fascination with rarity, one piece of research looked at a period in 2002 and found that 8,571 people had to die from smoking to generate one story on the subject from the BBC, while there were three stories for every death from vCJD. So you've probably heard that smoking may prevent Alzheimer's. It comes up in the papers, sometimes to say it is true, sometimes to say it has been refuted. Maybe you think it's a mixed bag, that "experts are divided". Perhaps you smoke, and joke about how it will stop you losing your marbles. This month, Janine Cataldo and colleagues publish a systematic review on the subject, but with a very interesting twist. First they found all the papers ever published on smoking and Alzheimer's, using an explicit search strategy which they describe properly in the paper – because they are scientists, not homeopaths – to make sure that they found all of the evidence, rather than just the studies they already knew about, or the ones which flattered their preconceptions. They found 43 in total, and overall, smoking significantly increases your risk of Alzheimer's. But they went further. Eleven of the studies were written by people with affiliations to the tobacco industry. This wasn't always declared, so to double check, the researchers searched on the University of California's Legacy Tobacco Documents Library, a vast collection of scanned material which has been gathered over decades of legal action. If you ever want to spend a chilling afternoon in the head of an industry whose product has been proven to kill a third of its customers, this is the place for you. . . . How much did it matter if the researchers worked for the tobacco companies? A lot: the risks of Alzheimer's associated with smoking reported by these papers were on average about a third lower than those conducted by others, and they produced many papers showing cigarettes were protective. If you exclude these 11 papers, and look only at the remainder, your chances of getting Alzheimer's are vastly higher: comparing a smoker against a non-smoker, the odds are higher by 1.72 to 1.