Smoking cigarettes leads to cognitive decline

AORN Journal,  June, 2004  

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Cognitive decline in older adults is accelerated by smoking cigarettes, according to a March 23, 2004, news release from the Alzheimer's Association. According to a European study published in the March 23 edition of Neurology, smokers declined cognitively five times faster than people who never smoked. Former smokers also declined faster than people who never smoked, although not as fast as current smokers. Smoking appears to negatively affect cognitive health and may be associated with an increased risk of dementia.

For 2.3 years, researchers followed 9,209 adults older than 65 years of age with no signs of dementia at the time the study began. They used the Mini-Mental State Examination to measure cognitive function. The maximum score possible was 30. On average, current smokers declined 0.16 points per year, former smokers 0.06 points per year, and nonsmokers 0.03 points per year. Although these results seem minor, in the bigger picture, they show that smoking is not good for cognitive health.

Brain Health: Another Reason Not to Smoke? (news release, Chicago: Alzheimer's Association, March 23, 2004) http://www.alz.org/News/04Q1/032304smoke.asp (accessed 30 March 2004).

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