Smoking can be more dangerous for
HIV patients, more than the virus itself
Among people living with HIV who smoke cigarettes, smoking may shorten their
lifespan more than HIV itself, warns a study by an Indian-origin researcher. ‘A
person with HIV who consistently takes HIV medicines but smokes is much more
likely to die of a smoking-related disease than of HIV itself,’ explained study
author Krishna P. Reddy of the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard
Medical School. The study suggests that making smoking cessation a priority and
finding effective ways to help people with HIV quit can significantly improve
their lifespan. ‘Now that HIV-specific medicines are so effective against the
virus itself, we also need to add other interventions that could improve and
extend the lives of people with HIV,’ Reddy noted. In their study, the
researchers used a computer simulation of HIV disease and treatment to project
the life expectancy of people living with HIV based on their smoking status.
For men and women with HIV who adhere well to HIV
medicines, the study, published in The Journal of Infectious Diseases,
found that smoking reduces life expectancy by about twice as much as HIV. ‘It
is well-known that smoking is bad for health, but we demonstrate in this study
just how bad it is,’ Reddy said. Smoking is especially dangerous for
people living with HIV, putting them at high risk for heart
disease,cancer, serious lung
diseases, and other
infections. ‘We actually quantify the risk, and I think providing those numbers
to patients can help put their own risks from smoking in perspective,’ Reddy
noted.
04.11.2016
Focus on
being productive instead of busy
Tim
Ferris
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