Tobacco 'multiplies risk of heart attack - however you consume it'
A STUDY of 27,000 people around the world has shown that all forms of tobacco exposure multiply the risk of having a heart attack.
Tobacco use including smoking cigarettes, chewing tobacco, inhaling secondhand smoke and puffing on "bubble" pipes, was found to be harmful.
Heart attack risk was increased three-fold in smokers compared with people who had never smoked.
The research, conducted in 52 countries, provided concrete evidence that secondhand smoke was dangerous to the heart.
Individuals with the highest levels of passive smoking exposure - 22 hours or more per week - raised their risk of a heart attack by around 45 per cent.
Chewing tobacco doubled the chances of having a heart attack, as did smoking eight to ten cigarettes a day.
Heart attack risk decreased with time after people stopped smoking.
In the case of light smokers who had fewer than ten cigarettes a day, there was no excess risk three to five years after quitting.
