What smoking just ONE cigarette really does to your body

SMOKING KILLS: What one cigarette does to your body might shock you

We all know smoking kills, but if you knew what just one cigarette does to your body, you’d think twice about lighting up when drunk.

According to new research published in the journal BMJ suggests, inhaling just one fag a day is linked to surprisingly high levels of health risks.

In the meta-analysis, researchers crunched the numbers from 141 previous studies looking at the number of cigarettes people smoked and their subsequent health risks.

CIGARETTE: Smoking just one cigarette can cause high levels of health risks

Researchers discovered that people who smoked just one cigarette were 74% more likely to develop coronary heart disease than non-smokers were.

Those who smoked 20 a day – generally a pack – had more than double the chances of heart disease than non-smokers.

As for brain health? People who smoked one a day were 30% more likely to have a stroke than non-smokers.

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“They should aim to stop smoking altogether”

- The chemicals in cigarette smoke can damage the structure and function of your blood vessels, increasing your risk of arteriosclerosis, or the buildup of wavy plaque.

-Over time, this can narrow and harden your arteries, limiting blood flow and potentially leading to heart attack or stroke, according to National Institutes of Health.

-Allan Hackshaw, the study author, said: “What this tells us is that people who smoke shouldn’t just cut down – they should aim to stop smoking altogether. There is no safe level of smoking.”

Anti-smoking advert shows how it affects the body

If you are thinking of giving up, here are eight ways of giving up smoking:

1. Find a reason to give up

2. Get support

3. Avoid triggers

4. Set a quit date

5. Exercise

6. Eat healthy snacks

7. Reduce caffeine intake

8. Use a quitting aid