Coronavirus or Smoking - Who kills more?

Smoking and Coronavirus: a fatal combination

Smoking is the leading preventable cause of disease and death not only in the United States but also in Brazil. The current mortality perspective from cigarette use in developed and developing countries is 6 million.

According to the Johns Hopkins University balance sheet on 06/17/2020, the world has more than 445,000 deaths from the coronavirus.

So, when we analyze the hyperbolic numbers, we see that the world is affected by two pandemics and one of them, the largest, favors the worsening of the infection and the transmission of the virus from the other. Smoking also helps to decrease immunity, worsen pulmonary symptoms and worsen the patient's condition.

This is very serious and, therefore, taking care of and helping smokers to quit the habit is of fundamental importance to also avoid the worsening of the coronavirus pandemic.

Although Brazil has made enormous progress in reducing and controlling smoking through national laws on smoking in closed environments, and the treatment is already available in primary care, we still have a large population of smokers in the country and the risk of new smokers, especially young people who start smoking through hookah experimentation, juul among other forms of tobacco use.

Coronavirus risks related to smoking

It is important that the population understands that all forms of tobacco use can increase the risk of developing Covid-19, including more serious and potentially fatal conditions.

The act of smoking brings the smoker's hands into contact with the face and lips of a cigarette that may be contaminated.

The use of hookahs and e-cigarettes to vaporize nicotine or tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) increases the likelihood of transmitting the virus due to the respective sharing of cigarette holders and hoses and devices that allow exhaling droplets of vapor that can also contaminate passive smokers.

Smokers of heated tobacco have the same risks of complications from this disease as users of traditional cigarettes.

Exposure to tobacco smoke or vapor is the main risk factor for respiratory diseases. Because it affects the body's immune response, it also contributes to viral and bacterial infections. Yes, smoking impairs our defense system and reaction to viruses and bacteria, which makes smokers more vulnerable to infectious diseases.

Studies show that patients with pneumonia with Covid-19 and their progression to more severe forms and death were 14 times higher among smokers than for non-smokers. One explanation for this is that many smokers have already developed chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, where there is an enzyme that facilitates contamination by the virus of lung cells.

 This is also possible for users of electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco. Smokers who already have reduced lung diseases and respiratory capacity and heart disease are more susceptible to the occurrence of Covid-19.

With each puff of cigarettes or similar products, the smoker inhales a considerable volume of carbon monoxide. The great affinity of this monoxide binding with hemoglobin generates carboxyhemoglobin, which causes low oxygen levels in the blood, which results in lower tolerance to exercise and physical exertion.

Among smokers who may be targets of the coronavirus, low blood oxygen and exposure to other tobacco toxins lead to dysfunction of the layer lining the inside of blood and lymphatic vessels, a generalized inflammatory process, and increased clot formation.

Window of Opportunity to Quit Smoking

All of this reinforces the need to raise awareness among smokers. We have a critical window of opportunity to quit smoking and increase surveillance in this public in order to prevent, detect, and quickly treat any cases of Covid-19.

Quitting smoking is a decisive protective measure that should be encouraged by health professionals to patients as one of the best actions to minimize serious problems caused by Sars-CoV-2.

Doctors need to investigate whether the patient smokes — this is inseparable from the history and clinical examination — and include addiction cessation in the list of good practices for controlling the pandemic.

Sources:

https://www.hcor.com.br/hcor-explica/outras/tabagismo-e-coronavirus/ - Accessed on 06/17/2020

https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html - Accessed on 06/17/2020

https://saude.abril.com.br/blog/com-a-palavra/por-que-coronavirus-e-tabagismo-sao-uma-combinacao-fatal/ - Accessed on 06/17/2020