Smoking and loss of eyesight

Wednesday 11 March 2015 marks national no smoking day, and you may be wondering how smoking and the loss of eyesight are linked? The link between smoking and the UK’s leading cause of sight loss is as strong as the link between smoking and lung cancer. In fact, Smoking doubles your chances of blindness:

THE FACTS

• Smoking causes harm to the tissues of the eye. Research has confirmed the harmful effects of smoking on eyesight, particularly in the development of age-related macular degeneration (AMD)  and cataracts.
• Smokers increase their risk of developing AMD by 4 times, and tend to develop it 10 years earlier than non-smokers. Treatment options for AMD are limited. Stopping smoking can reduce the risk of macular degeneration developing.
• Smoking is linked to the development of cataracts, and smokers are 3 times more likely to develop them. Although they are treatable, they remain a major cause of sight loss in the UK.
• Smoking can make diabetes related sight problems worse.
• Smoking increases free radicals, which accelerate ageing, and alter the body’s ability to absorb or extract necessary vitamins and minerals from food.
• Passive smoking is almost as harmful as smoking yourself