In the first study, researchers followed 32,000 female nurses for 12 years, periodically checking their smoking habits and health status. Those puffing at least 25 cigarettes a day suffered two and a half times the AMD rate of those who had never smoked. Women who had quit still developed the condition at twice the rate of those who had never smoked.
The second study tracked 21,000 male physicians and found a similar pattern. As in the nurses’ study, pack-a-day smokers developed AMD at two to three times the rate of ““never smokers.’’ But in this study, quitting eliminated most of the risk. No onne knows how smoking promotes AMD; it may impede circulation or simply accelerate the aging of cells. Either way, the new studies suggest one way to avoid it.
