13-15 ,16 As outlined in Section 3.36.1 , even very low levels of exposure can cause cancer or create changes in the cardiovascular system: there is no safe level of smoking
3.36.3 Risks associated with non-daily smoking In the US since the 2010s, several very large cohort studies linked to national morbidity and mortality data bases have increasingly allowed researchers to study the effects of infrequent smoking over long periods of time
318 1 2 Psychopharmacology
After 1 Year of Smoking Structural Changes Begin Chest CT and HRCT scans of early smokers often show : Airway thickening Mucus gland enlargement Early emphysema-like changes Functional Impairment A study by the European Respiratory Society shows that even 12 months of smoking causes: 510% reduction in lung function Reduced capacity for pollutant clearance Increased incidence of cough, colds, and allergies After 5 Years of Smoking Lung damage, by this stage, has become more pronounced and is visible on imaging
But smokers reach menopause an average of 1 1/2 years earlier than women who don't smoke
Ben Lacey, M.B.Ch.B., D.Phil
