Smoking may prevent development of toxic substances that interfere w/proper neurological functioning

Study finds smoking wards off Parkinson's disease


CHICAGO (Reuters) - There is more evidence to back up a long-standing theory that smokers are less likely to develop Parkinson's disease than people who do not use tobacco products, researchers reported on Monday.

The apparent protective effect of tobacco against the degenerative nerve disease has been observed for years but a University of California Los Angeles School of Public Health report said a new review of existing studies seems to confirm it, with long-term and current smokers at the lowest risk.

The review also found that the effect seems to extend beyond cigarettes to pipes and cigars, and possibly to chewing tobacco, and that it persisted among those who had stopped smoking years earlier.

What would cause such a preventive effect is not well understood, said the report in the Archives of Neurology, but studies on test animals suggested two possibilities.

One is that carbon monoxide or other agents in tobacco smoke exert a protective effect and promote survival of brain neurons that produce dopamine, which allows muscles to move properly and is lacking in Parkinson's cases.

Cigarettes may also somehow prevent the development of toxic substances that interfere with proper neurological functioning.

While there have been a number of previous studies, most were too small to be conclusive, the report said. So the UCLA researchers looked at 11 studies done between 1960 and 2004 covering more than 11,800 people, of whom 2,816 had Parkinson's disease.

"Our analyses confirmed prior reports of an inverse association between cigarette smoking and Parkinson's disease," the study said.

"Although we found that current smokers and those who had continued to smoke to within five years of Parkinson's disease diagnosis exhibited the lowest risk, a decrease in risk (13 percent to 32 percent) was also observed in those who had quit smoking up to 25 years prior to Parkinson's disease diagnosis," it said.

"Other tobacco products also appeared to be protective. Men who smoked pipes or cigars had a 54 percent lower risk. The number of chewing tobacco users was small, but there was a suggestion of reduced risk associated with this product," it added.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070709/hl_nm/smoking_parkinsons_dc

It's not just cool, it's good for you!

Avoid tobacco. Enjoy Cannabis.


:smoke:

:evilgrin: Anyway, I don't :smoke:.

That stuff makes me paranoid (probably because of the aforementioned reason) and I don't need the extra added help. :rofl:

At least we know Haruka won't get Parkinson's.

of studies like this. I can't see in this report how they adjusted for the fact that smokers die earlier, reducing their chances of developing Parkinson's Disease? Smoking already weeds out the weaker genetic specimens at a younger age, right?

if you say, 'develop parkinson's by age 40' say, and only count smokers who reach age 40, or "by age 50" or the similar. I just don't see this issue covered in the story, and I am too lazy to go look up the article on PubMed.

She smoked since the age of 13, and developed Parkinson's in her 60's. The cigarettes didn't shield her from the Parkinson's but I'm sure they contributed to her death from congestive heart failure.

he was a longtime smoker, as well.

Speaking of MJF, 'Back to the Future" was on last night. The film still holds up after 22 years. :-)

...Smoking also virtually eliminates the risk of death by natural causes.

- and I don't see what is so surprising about that. It's a botanical, just like Cannabis.

How can discovering a preventative, treatment or possible cure for any disease using tobacco be anything less than a GOOD thing? :shrug:

Now, I've heard everything. :eyes:

- but it might be something else in the tobacco that's responsible. We use botanicals daily in meds but we don't smoke them. Tobacco capsules or pills??? Maybe . . .

Now if it weren't for that pesky and fatal lung cancer....
My mom died from it...but hey, she didn't have Parkinsons.
Lee

Other researchers have noticed this before, if only anecdotally. Only thing is, no medical professional is going to advocate smoking. The negative impacts out way any potential benefits. Tobacco in its smoked form contains many, many different compounds. So nicotine itself, may or may not be the cause here. There isn't enough evidence to pin point which of those compounds have only beneficial effects. But there is a wealth of evidence to show smoking is not at all healthy.

They studied 11,800 people, it doesn't say if all these people smoked or not, though presumably they did, since they're trying to link smokers and Parkinson's. 2,816 had Parkinson's. So 23.8% of smokers they studied had Parkinson's.

Does Parkinson's effect greater or fewer than 24% of the population at large. I'm thinking probably fewer.

If Parkinson's effects 10% of the general population, and 24% of smokers, that would indicate tobacco is not particularly good for preventing Parkinson's.

:shrug: