Smoking cigarettes has long been known for damaging eyesight, on top of the harm it does to lungs, heart, and other organs.
A recent study suggests that smoking may impair vision far earlier than is thought. Heavy smokers with an average age of 35 were markedly worse than non smokers at distinguishing colors and the contrast between different shades of gray. Previous research has linked smoking with macular degeneration and cataracts, which tend to occur decades later.
And now there’s JUUL — one pod contains the same amount of nicotine as a pack of cigarettes. Nicotine is harmful to adolescent brain development.
20 ways smoking can affect your vision and eye health
Did you know the link between smoking and sight loss is as strong as the link between smoking and lung cancer?
#1 Tobacco smoke causes biological changes in your eyes that can lead to vision loss
#2 Cigarettes contain toxins that enter your eyes & increase your risk of sight loss by up to four times
#3 Tobacco chemicals damage blood vessels inside your eyes
#4 Tobacco chemicals interfere with the production of your tears
#5 Smoking causes oxidative stress and damages your retina
#6 Tobacco reduces the amount of oxygen that reaches your macula
#7 Smoking is a key risk factor for #AMD, a leading cause of blindness
#8 Research published in @bmj suggests 1 in 5 cases of #AMD are caused by tobacco consumption
#9 On average smokers develop #AMD 5 years earlier than non-smokers
#10 Smoking is a major risk factor in the development of cataracts
#11 The risk of nuclear cataracts is 3 times greater in smokers
#12 Smoking is a significant risk factor for developing diabetic retinopathy
#13 Smoking increases your risk of dry eye syndrome – the leading cause of eye irritation in over 65s
#14 Smoking is associated with the development of thyroid eye disease
#15 Smokers have increased prevalence of color vision deficiency
#16 Nicotine poisoning can make it difficult to clearly distinguish colours with a red or green hue
#17 Smokers are twice as likely to suffer Uveitis than non-smokers.
#18 Smoking increases the risk of contact lens wearers suffering corneal ulcers
#19 Smoking in pregnancy increases the risk of your child having a squint
#20 Smoking around loved ones increases their risk of suffering sight loss
