Smoking doubles the risk of developing a severe case of coronavirus and in need of hospitalization, according to a new study.
Research provides the first conclusive evidence, based on real-world data, that being a smoker puts people at a higher risk of severe illness than non-smokers.
It was found that smokers are 14% more likely to have the three main symptoms of coronavirus: fever, persistent cough and difficulty breathing.
But smokers also have a 50% higher risk of developing more than ten symptoms simultaneously – including cough, fever, loss of smell, loss of appetite, diarrhea, fatigue, confusion or muscle aches – than people who do not. smoking.
The development of many symptoms is often an indicator of more severe infection, experts believe.
The data was collected from millions of Britons via King’s College London’s ZOE app.
The findings, published in the journal BMJ Thorax, fly ahead of previous studies, many of which found that smokers were less likely to catch the coronavirus or become seriously ill.
Academics have been baffled by the data, as decades of research have found that tobacco smoking increases the risk of deadly diseases such as lung cancer, stroke and diabetes.
But as the pandemic has progressed, new research has emerged that smokers who take Covid-19 are more likely to see their disease progress rapidly and lead to death.
There have been conflicting reports about the impact of smoking on the prognosis of a Covid patient, with some studies finding that it reduces the risk and others find the opposite. Now, KCL data shows that smokers are twice as likely to be hospitalized as non-smokers
Dr. Mario Falchi, principal investigator and senior lecturer at King’s College London, said: “Some reports have suggested a protective effect of smoking on the risk of COVID-19.
However, studies in this area can be easily affected by biases in sampling, participation and response. Our results clearly show that smokers have an increased risk of experiencing a wider range of COVID-19 symptoms than non-smokers.
The latest study by KCL provides real-life information about patients living with Covid and looked at both self-reported and laboratory-confirmed cases.
The data in the application shows that, out of 2.4 million participants who downloaded ZOE between March 24 and April 23 last year, 220,135 were smokers – about 11%.
This is slightly lower than the UK average, with 14% of the population being smokers, but it was representative, the researchers say.
Participants sent various data about themselves, any symptoms that appeared and the positive results of the laboratory.
Self-reported data are less reliable, but at this early stage of the pandemic, testing capacity was a fraction of what it is now and was only available in hospitals.
Claire Steves, principal investigator, consultant and reader at King’s College London, said: “As COVID-19 rates continue to rise and the NHS approaches capacity, it is important that we do everything we can to reduce its effects and find ways to reduce hospital admissions.
Our analysis shows that smoking increases a person’s chances of attending hospitals, so stopping smoking is one of the things we can do to reduce the health consequences of the disease.
At the beginning of the pandemic, when little was known about SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, researchers instinctively warned that smokers would be at higher risk because the coronavirus targets the respiratory system and the known link between smoking and cancer. lung, stroke, diabetes and other chronic conditions affecting the same system.
Artist David Hockney first suggested the idea that smokers might be less at risk, as the nicotine-fueled habit strengthens smokers’ immune systems and bodies, leading to harsher respiratory systems.
The 82-year-old mentioned in April 2020 that Greece had one of the lowest pandemics in Europe, despite the above average number of smokers. Greece has so far experienced less than 5,000 deaths and about 133,000 cases.
In contrast, the United Kingdom recorded more than 76,000 deaths, and the National Statistics Office revealed yesterday that there are currently 1.1 million Britons infected with Covid-19 – about one in 50.
Subsequently, studies emerged that agreed with Mr Hockney, finding smokers really low risk, and experts flew to explain how this could be, calling him “weird” and “bizarre”.
Despite confusing evidence, the World Health Organization said in June that smoking can make people more sensitive to COVID-19.
But a study published earlier that month in Mexico looked at data from nearly 90,000 patients and found that smokers were 23 percent less likely than non-smokers to be diagnosed with Covid-19.
Smoking doubles the risk of developing a severe case of coronavirus and in need of hospitalization, according to a study. Research is the first conclusive evidence that smoking puts people at higher risk of severe disease than non-smokers
And the team found that infected smokers no longer had a chance to need intensive care, be connected to a fan or die.
Academics at University College London analyzed 28 papers and found that the proportion of smokers among hospital patients was “lower than expected”.
But other studies have been published suggesting that smokers may be at increased risk, however, scientists have so far struggled to provide real-world data to support this.
A recent study by UCLA academics used laboratory-grown stem cells and found that smoking causes three times more coronavirus infection.
The study showed that smoking stops the proper functioning of key immune system molecules called interferons.
Interferons are messengers that tell infected cells to produce proteins to attack the invading pathogen and are essential for fighting the initial infection.
They also call for support from the wider immune system and warn uninfected cells to prepare for the virus.
The study found that smoking stops this way of functioning properly and this causes an increase of up to three times the number of human cells infected with the virus.
“If you think about the airways, like the high walls that protect a castle, smoking cigarettes is like creating holes in these walls,” Dr. Brigitte Gomperts of UCLA said in November.
“Smoking reduces natural defenses and allows the virus to set in.”