Smoking And Heart Disease
The facts:
- If you are a smoker, quitting is the biggest step you can take to reduce the risk of having a heart attack.
- For people with heart conditions, giving up smoking can be life saving.
- Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death and illness in the UK. Smoking causes one in eight of these deaths, and one in five premature deaths before the age of 75.
- The majority of people who suffer a heart attack before the age of 50 are smokers.
- Smokers are almost twice as likely to have a heart attack as people who have never smoked.
- It can increase the risk of developing several different types of cancer and is the main cause of some lung diseases.