Smoking can cause changes in your genes!

You may have thought that all the health hazards of smoking have already been documented but scientists have now found that smoking can alter your genes too! Researchers from Uppsala University and Uppsala Clinical Research Center in Sweden found that smoking affects genes which increase the risk for cancer and diabetes, or are important for the immune response or sperm quality.

They examined how the genes are changed in smokers and users of non-smoke tobacco. The study identified a large number of genes that were altered in smokers but found no such effect of non-smoke tobacco. 'This means that the epigenetic modifications are likely not caused by substances in the tobacco, but by the hundreds of different elements that are formed when the tobacco is burnt,' said Asa Johansson, researcher at the Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology at Uppsala University and Uppsala Clinical Research Center, who led the study.

'Our results therefore indicate that the increased disease risk associated with smoking is partly a caused by epigenetic changes. (Read: War on tobacco)

'A better understanding of the molecular mechanism behind diseases and reduced body function might lead to improved drugs and therapies in the future,' said Johansson.

It has been previously known that smokers have an increased risk of developing diabetes and many types of cancer, and have a reduced immune defence and lower sperm quality.

Want to quit? Here are some great ways to do just that

Cold Turkey The oldest and most successful method is going 'cold turkey' that is quitting smoking without taking any substitute for nicotine. 75% people who've quit smoking claim to have done so without the aid of any aid or supplement. Coupled with therapy and intervention cold turkey is supposed to be the best way to quit. There are various websites and helplines which help people quit without the aid of any medicines. Most replacement therapies look to chemically substitute the nicotine hit of smoking but it just means switching from one addiction to another. One of the champions of cold turkey was Allen Carr, a chain smoker who quit smoking and went on to write a book entitled The Easy Way to Quit Smoking which is the most popular book on quitting smoking in the world. Many people have quit smoking after reading his book and this list include celebrities like Ashton Kutcher, Britney Spears, Richard Branson, Anthony Hopkins and closer home Mahesh Babu and Hrithik Roshan. Allen Carr's basic principle was despite overwhelming evidence which points out the hazards of smoking people don't quit because they think of quitting as 'giving in' or giving up.

Nicotine Replacement Therapies (NRT) NRT looks to take care of nicotine craving by providing a substitute source without the harmful effects of tobacco. It works on the principle that though nicotine is the 'addictive' part of cigarettes the more dangerous ones are tar, carbon monoxide and other gases. There are various products under this Nicorette umbrella which look to aid cessation including chewing gums, lozenges, nasal sprays, patches and inhalers. Some electronic cigarettes also have nicotine filters. Real world studies have shown that NRT's aren't as effective as pharmaceutical companies claim. In the real world, 95% who have taken OTC medication have relapsed.

Other medical aid Several other companies have come out with smoking cessation drugs that don't look to replace nicotine. One such drug is Bupripion which is marketed as an anti-depressant, smoking cessation drug and anti-obesity pill. It works on the principle that smoking is a form of countering depression and an antidepressant can perform the same function. Another popular drug is Pfizer's Varenicline which reduces cravings by making the effects of nicotine less pleasurable. There are various side-effects of these drugs. Varenicline is known to cause suicidal thoughts, depression, drowsiness, nausea and the USFDA even claimed that it can cause cardiovascular disease.

With inputs from PTI

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