It is a known fact that smoking is hazardous to health. Researchers from the King’s College in London recently also concluded that smoking rots the brain by damaging the memory, learning and reasoning. The study results were published in the journal Age and Ageing.
The researchers conducted a study on about 8,800 people aged over 50 years and showed that having high blood pressure and being overweight also affected the brain, but to a lesser extent. The study also investigated links between the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke and the state of the brain.
People over the age of 50 were investigated for their health, lifestyle and brain function, using tests such as making the participants learn new words or to name as many animals as they could in a minute. All participants were tested after four and then eight years.
It was found that the overall risk of heart attack or a stroke was significantly associated with cognitive decline and those at highest risk showed greatest decline. The research also said that there was a consistent association between smoking and lower scores in the tests. However, the results could not determine how such a decline can affect people from going about their daily life. The researchers are also not sure if the early drop in brain function can also lead to conditions like dementia.
