Originally published October 3 2005
Risk of type 2 diabetes increases for smokers, researchers find
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Observing 906 middle-aged adults, Wake Forest researchers discovered that the smokers among study participants were 2.7 times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes.
Researchers at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine's Department of Public Health Sciences have found that smokers could be nearly three times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than people who don't smoke.
The study followed 906 middle-aged adults, and recorded how many of them developed type 2 diabetes over the next 5 years.
Researchers found that smokers were 2.7 times more likely to develop the disease than non-smokers.
Even after adjusting for other potential risk factors for diabetes, such as age, waist size, and obesity, 25% of the smokers in the study developed type 2 diabetes, compared to 14% of people who never smoked.
Experts say that there are many possible reasons why smoking may increase a person's risk for developing the disease.
Smoking increases insulin levels, glucose levels, and blood pressure levels, all of which are associated with an increased risk of diabetes.
Also, toxic substances in cigarettes, such as cadmium, that are found along with nicotine, have been associated with diabetes.
According to the researchers, the findings suggest that aside from the countless other dangers cigarette smoking poses to health, smoking by itself may increase the chance of developing type 2 diabetes.
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