Even extremely low cigarette consumption increases the risk of heart attack.
Even extremely low cigarette consumption — just 2–5 cigarettes a day — significantly increases the risk of heart attack, heart failure, and death. This conclusion was reached by scientists from the Johns Hopkins Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention, who analyzed data from over 300,000 individuals across 22 long-term studies. The work was published in PLOS Medicine.
The analysis of nearly two decades of observations showed that 'light' smokers have a 50 percent higher risk of heart failure and a 60 percent higher risk of death from any cause compared to those who have never smoked. Moreover, even 30 years after quitting smoking, the danger remains elevated, although it noticeably decreases in the first 10 years after cessation.
Researchers emphasize that reducing the number of cigarettes is pointless — it is more important to quit completely as early as possible. This is the only strategy that truly reduces long-term risk to the heart and blood vessels.
