Lifestyle
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Smokers face 45% higher dementia risk, doctor says
Hindustan Times··4d ago
Fortis Hospital Jalandhar neurologist Dr Anmol Singh Rai cited WHO and Alzheimer's Disease International figures that smokers have a 45 percent higher dementia risk than non-smokers. A 2022 Nature Communications study of more than 36,000 adults linked one to two daily drinks to grey and white matter loss. One extra daily drink matched about two years of ageing.
Prism
What It Means For You
- Rai said nicotine narrows vessels and carbon monoxide further reduces oxygen reaching brain tissue.
- Smoking is estimated to account for 14 percent of Alzheimer's cases worldwide in the cited figures.
- He said quitting can restore blood flow and bring dementia risk closer to non-smoker levels within years.
What's Happening
- The Nature Communications paper scanned more than 36,000 adult brains.
- Even one to two drinks a day were tied to measurable volume reductions.
- Rai said combined smoking and heavy drinking can accelerate small vessel disease.
What the Studies Measured
- Grey matter supports thinking; white matter carries signals between regions.
- Rai compared long-term smoking damage to rust narrowing a pipe.
- The HT article presented the remarks as information, not personal medical advice.
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