Abstract
Tobacco is a one of the most common addictive stimulants used by people around the world. The smoke generated during tobacco combustion is a toxic mixture of more than 5000 chemicals of which over 30 are known human carcinogens. While its negative effects on the human body are well understood, it remains a serious public health problem. One of the multiple effects of smoking is tobacco’s effect on the nervous system—its development and function. This review aims to summarize the progress made in research on the effects of tobacco on the nervous system both of the perinatal period and adults and both in animals and humans in 2015–2020. The 1245 results that corresponded to the keywords “tobacco, cigarette, nervous system, brain, morphology, function” were reviewed, of which 200 abstracts were considered significant. Most of those articles broadened the knowledge about the negative effects of smoking on the human nervous system. Tobacco has a significant negative impact on the development of nervous structures, neurotransmission and cognitive functions, and promotes the development of neurodegenerative diseases, insomnia and cerebrovascular diseases. The only exception is the protective effect of the dopaminergic system in Parkinson’s disease. In conclusion, in recent years much effort has been devoted to describing, revealing and uncovering new aspects of tobacco detrimental to human life. The nicotine contained in tobacco smoke affects the human body in a multidimensional way, including a serious impact on the broadly understood neurological health.
Highlights
According to a WHO global report on trends of tobacco use, by the year of 2025 the prevalence of tobacco use will be 30% in males and 8% in females [1]
The secondary aims of this study were to determine what impact maternal smoking during pregnancy has on the nervous system, how tobacco influences cognition and brain functions, what are new discoveries in the field of its relation to neurovascular diseases, what are the outcomes of mixing tobacco with other stimulants, what are radiological findings in tobacco users and whether there is any relation between grand-maternal smoking and offspring health
The results describe tobacco influence from the earliest moments of life up to its impact to neurodegenerative diseases commonly encountered in late stages of it
Summary
According to a WHO global report on trends of tobacco use, by the year of 2025 the prevalence of tobacco use will be 30% in males and 8% in females [1]. Smoking is a cause of a number of serious (and often preventable) diseases like cancers of the lungs, pancreas, esophagus, bladder and oral cavity, cardiovascular, respiratory system and gastrointestinal diseases, impaired fertility and overall acceleration of the aging process [6]. This is because tobacco smoke (both its gas phase and its particulate phase)—in addition to the main and harmless components, which are nitrogen, oxygen and carbon dioxide (and account for 85% of the weight of tobacco smoke) [7]—is a toxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic mixture of more than 5000 chemicals, of which over 30 are known human carcinogens [8]. It should not be forgotten that e-cigarette liquids contain nicotine—this substance is highly addictive and, can harm brain development (which continues until about age 25 years) [12]
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