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Even one cigarette a day doubles the risk of a heart attack
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
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Women who smoke even one cigarette a day have a higher risk of sudden death from heart attack and other heart disease compared to non-smoking women.
The results of the scientists' research are presented on the pages of the scientific journal "Journal of the American Heart Association".
Canadian scientists from the University of Alberta, Edmunton, have discovered that women who smoke are at much greater risk than previously thought, even though their appearance may not reveal any potential health problems.
"Heart problems can lead to heart attack and can result in death," said Rupinder Sandhu, lead author of the study. "Our research shows that smoking is the leading risk factor for sudden death from heart attack in women. It is important to quit smoking before the first signs of heart problems appear."
In the UK, almost half of the 10 million smokers are women. Although the number of smokers has fallen, the decline has been less dramatic among women.
More than one hundred thousand women took part in the study, and their condition was monitored for thirty years. At the beginning of the study, the women were aged 30-55.
Most of the smoking ladies admitted that they started smoking in their teens.
During the entire study period, 315 sudden deaths from heart attacks were recorded, 75 of which were smokers. Such cases at the age of 35 most often occur due to heart diseases that are hereditary. However, in older people, the cause may be ischemic heart disease. IHD is characterized by a partial or absolute disruption of the blood supply to the myocardium, which occurs due to damage to the coronary arteries of the heart.
The experts took into account all risk factors that could become a potential threat and cause of sudden death: a family history of heart disease, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure. The experts note that of the 315 people who died suddenly, 75 were active smokers, 148 smoked in the past or quit recently, and 128 had never smoked.
Dr. Sandu and his team of specialists concluded that women who smoked were twice as likely to die suddenly than those who had never smoked. Even those who smoked one to fourteen cigarettes daily had no improvement in their health, and every five years of smoking only increased the risk of dying from a heart attack by 8%.
"Our study once again confirms how dangerous smoking is and how important it is to get rid of the addiction as early as possible. In this way, you can reduce the risk of sudden death from a heart attack. Of course, quitting smoking is not easy, but for the sake of your health, you can try, and we hope that our results will be a good push for this," the researchers comment.
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