Question:
I am trying to give my 25-year-old daughter as many reasons to quit smoking as possible. Any information you can give me about smoking and its effects on the skin would be appreciated.
Answer:
Along with prolonged sun exposure, smoking tobacco is one of the major causes of facial wrinkles, and experts believe it is one of the fastest acting threats. In addition, the combined effects of smoking and sun exposure can greatly accelerate the wrinkling process.
Although the degree of aging due to smoking depends on genetic and environmental factors, long-term smokers often have wrinkles similar to nonsmokers who are 20 years older. People start showing signs of early skin aging after about 10 years of smoking. Because many people begin smoking during their teenage years, a 30-year-old woman may have the face of a 50 year old.
Cigarette smoke contains roughly 4000 chemicals, more than 60 of which can cause cancer. Once inhaled, these toxins are absorbed directly into the bloodstream and carried to the skin and other organs.
Nicotine tightens blood vessels, a process called vasoconstriction, decreasing blood flow to vital organs including the skin, depriving it of oxygen and essential nutrients such as vitamin A. Vitamin A is essential for generating new skin cells to replace those that die and is critical to maintaining healthy, youthful-looking skin. Vitamin A deficiency accelerates aging and contributes to irreversible skin changes and wrinkling.
Over time, the lack of oxygen and nutrients increases the formation of harmful free radicals, which are highly charged oxygen particles that damage the skin cells and skin’s collagen and elastin - structural proteins that provide tone and elasticity. As damage to collage and elastin accumulates, skin loses its tone and begins to sag and winkle. In addition, pursing the lips to suck smoke into the lungs and squinting to protect eyes from irritating smoke aggravate wrinkling around the mouth and eyes.
Douglas Model, MD, a British physician, coined the term “smoker’s face” in 1985 after he found its distinguishing characteristics – deep lines around the corner of the mouth and eyes, gaunt facial features, and a grayish tint to the skin – were present in roughly half of the smokers he surveyed, regardless of age, social class, exposure to sunlight, recent change in weight, or estimated lifetime consumption of cigarettes. In a subsequent clinical study, 46% of long-term smokers were characterized as having smoker’s face. Dr. Model concluded, “The fact that so many of the people with smoker’s face were fairly young indicates that it is not simply a symptom of age, but suggests a toxic process.”
Because nicotine is a diuretic, smoking dries out the surface of the skin, and several studies link smoking with decreases in skin moisture, which compounds a dry wrinkled appearance. In a study of identical twins at St. Thomas’ Hospital, the sibling who smoked had skin that was 25% to 40% thinner than that of their nonsmoking twin.
Even second-hand smoke can damage the skin: it promotes scarring, causes skin odor as the smoke is absorbed into the skin, and the formaldehyde released from cigarettes can produce skin rashes in some people.
Although the damaging effects of smoking on skin are irreversible, your daughter can avoid further deterioration by quitting the habit. There also are many other potentially life-threatening health risks associated with smoking that smokers should consider:
- Cigarette smoking cause 87% of lung cancer deaths and is responsible for most cancers of the larynx, oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus, and bladder.
- Secondhand smoke is responsible for an estimated 3000 lung cancer deaths among US nonsmokers each year.
- Smoking is the primary cause of chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
- Cigarette smoking dramatically increases the risks for several common eye diseases such as cataracts and the irreversible age-related macular degeneration (the most common cause of blindness in older Americans).
- Smoking is a major independent risk factor for atherosclerosis, heart disease, and stroke.
- Smokers are at a much higher risk of developing osteoporosis, and smoking delays the healing of bone fractures.
For information on how to quit smoking, the CDC offers an index of helpful Web sites and programs.