Is smoking as bad as people say? The answer is yes, certainly. Tobacco is responsible for 5.6 million deaths every year, wich means that the substance kills about 10 people per minute. Not even those who are not addicted to cigarettes are free from their harms. More than 10$ of deaths are from non-smokers, who die from breathing second-hand smoke.
But if by chance smokers are lucky and manage to avoid all the risks the cigarrete offers, such as cancer, heart disease and emphysema, they can be protected uniquely, for reasons not yet explained by science, against some diseases and afflictions.
Although long-term smoking may accelerate your death, here are five benefits for smokers:
- Decreases Risk of Knee Replacement Surgery
Surprising results from a new study revealed that men who smoke are less likely to undergo surgeries for total knee replacement than those who have never smoked.
What could be the connection? Knee replacement surgery is more common among runners and obese, and smoking rarely facilitates exercise and strengthens a slimmer physique. It may be that the nicotine present in tobacco helps to prevent deterioration of joints and cartilage.
- Reduces The Risk of Parkinson's
Numerous studies have found an inverse relationship between smoking and Parkinson's disease. The latest, by researchers at Harvard University, has offered compelling evidence that smokers are less likely to develop Parkinson's. A study published in the journal Neurology states that the protective effect disappears as soon as the addiction is cured. However, the cause of the protective effect was not determined.
- Reduces The Risk of Obesity
The nicotine present in tobacco smoke is an appetite suppressant, used since the indigenous cultures of America in the pre-comlumbian era. Tobacco companies in the 1920s started telling women that smoking would make them thinner.
The relationship between smoking and weight control is complex. Nicotine acts as a stimulant and appetite suppressant, and the act of smoking causes behavioral modification, inducing smokers to eat less.
Smoking can also make foods less tasty for some, which helps reduce appetite. As an appetite suppressant, nicotine acts on a parte of the brain called the hypothalamus, as revealed in a study by researchers at Yale University.
- Reduces Risk of Death After Heart Attack
Compared to non-smokers, smokers who had heart attacks appear to have more responses to the two types of therapy to remove plaque from arteries, both fibrinolytic, which is basically medication; such as angioplasty, which removes the plaque by inserting balloons into the arteries. However, there is a big problem, because the reason why smokers have heart attacks is the smoke that clogs the arteries, allowing the accumulation of fat and plaques on the spot.
- Increases The Effect of Medications For Heart Function
Clopidogrel is a drug used to inhibit the formation of blood clots in patients suffering from blockages in coronary arteries and other cardiovascular diseases, leading to strokes and heart attacks. Smoking seems to help clopidogrel to do its job in the best way possible.
One study shows the benefit of smoking at least ten cigarettes per day. It seems that something in cigarette smoke activates proteins called cytochromes, which convert clopidogrel to a more active state.
Of course, no respectable doctor encourages patients to smoke to get those "benefits" (with the exception of Dr. House).
But this reveal how certain chemicals can have real therapeutic value.
Source(s): http://www.neurologyadvisor.com