Cigarette smoking and the oxidative stress induced biochemical changes

An investigation was carried out to assess the health status of cigarette smokers, oxidative stress induced changes and prevalence of smoking among smokers of different age groups in Thiruvananthapuram city, situated in the southern part of Kerala, India. The 52 male volunteers, aged between 20 and 70 years who are residents in Ulloor ward of Thiruvananthapuram Corporation in Kerala state were selected for the study. Among these 52 subjects, 36 were current smokers and 16 were non-smokers. The body weight, height and duplicate blood pressure measurements at rest were taken. Fasting blood samples were collected to determine the changes in serum biochemical parameters like total cholesterol, malondialdehyde, sodium, potassium and selected heavy metals in smokers and non-smokers. Analysis of the results show that among the total participants, 69 % were smokers and of these smokers, 41.7 % were in the age group 36- 50 years. The body weight of the smokers was found to be less than that of the nonsmokers in the same age group. The BMI of 72.2% smokers were found to be less than that of the non-smokers. 77.8 % of the smokers in the study population were hypertensive and the blood pressure increases with age. Serum total cholesterol levels in smokers were found to be higher than that of non-smokers and this excess cholesterol may get deposited in the blood vessels and causes atherosclerosis. The smokers with BMI less than 25 recorded highest cholesterol levels. Serum sodium and potassium levels in smokers were higher than that of non-smokers. The increase in serum sodium content in smokers was highly significant compared to non-smokers. Concentrations of serum malondialdehyde, the lipid peroxidation product and the heavy metals like Cu and Cd were also found to be significantly high in smokers. The studyproves that smoking enhances free radical production which results in the formation of lipid peroxidation products and degradation of macromolecules, which may lead to cell damage or death. Results of this study also indicate that there is a positive correlation between mean cadmium content and blood pressure of smokers.