Smokers prone to hypersensitivity: study

Users also tend to suffer from insufficient sleep, lack of motivation or overeating

Smokers tend to be 200% more hypersensitive than non-smokers, a study conducted by pulmonologists from Mumbai, New Delhi and Bangalore has revealed.

The study — Choose Life — was conducted among 1,000 males in the age group of 25-50. Of the total number of respondents, 50% were smokers who took to more 10 cigarettes per day. The rest were non-smokers.

Higher mental stress

The survey revealed that smokers suffer from 178% more mental stress than non-smokers. Smokers also suffer broken and insufficient sleep, lack of motivation, overeating or under-eating and anger outbursts at family or at work.

The study also found out that despite knowing the serious health effects of smoking, 74% of the respondents felt that it was hard to quit smoking. Shockingly, three out of four respondents smoked even if they were unwell and eight in 10 smokers felt the urge to smoke as soon as they woke up.

Shocking finds

It also found that of the surveyed areas — Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Lucknow or Kolkata — the challenges associated with quitting smoking are the same. Another startling find was that almost 88% of the smokers took to the habit before they turned 24, and 55% of them started smoking to look cool or just for fun.

Further, more than 65% of the smokers had high blood pressure and four out of five smokers had higher levels of carbon monoxide (CO) compared to non-smokers. Elevated CO levels and high blood pressure can have a serious impact on physical and mental health.

Myths busted

Dr. Pralhad Prabhudesai, a pulmonologist from Lilavati Hospital, Mumbai, said: “The biggest challenge is that a lot of people smoke despite knowing the health risks associated with it. They feel that smoking helps them to de-stress and makes them more productive. The study, however, indicates smokers suffer from greater mental stress compared to non-smokers.”