Smokers Have Triple The Risk of Sight Loss

A smoker is three times more likely to develop age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) than a non smoker. In fact, ARMD is the leading cause of blindness among adults over the age of fifty. The link between smoking and ARMD has now been shown to be as strong as that between smoking and lung cancer. Non-smokers who live with smokers have been shown to have double the risk for developing ARMD.

Despite these facts, the public seems unaware of the connection between smoking and danger to their eyesight. A survey of 1023 adults in the UK showed that only 7% knew that smoking could affect their eyesight. When informed that ARMD and smoking were linked, over 41% of smokers questioned said they would quit smoking, if they thought it would harm their vision. Another 28% said they would cut down the number of cigarettes smoked per day to protect their eyesight.

The good news is that studies have shown that among smokers who have given up the habit for more than 20 years, the risk of developing ARMD is similar to that of nonsmokers. Perhaps campaigns to raise awareness about smoking and its potential to cause blindness would be more effective than those stressing its risks for heart disease and lung cancer. Campaigns in Australia and New Zealand have already started and results have been encouraging.


References:

http://www.medwire-news.md/51/38714/General_Medicine/Smokers_have_double_risk_of_sight_loss.html

http://www.medwire-news.md/51/44926/General_Medicine/Second-hand_smoke_linked_to_eye_disease.html

http://www.preventblindness.org/news/releases/091809_1.html

http://www.esrezaeian.com/armdandcnv.htm