"A Stark Warning:" Smoking Causes Genetic Damage within Minutes After Inhaling
Saturday, January 15, 2011 - 18:30
in Health & Medicine
In research described as "a stark warning" to those tempted to start smoking, scientists are reporting that cigarette smoke begins to cause genetic damage within minutes -- not years -- after inhalation into the lungs. Their report, the first human study to detail the way certain substances in tobacco cause DNA damage linked to cancer, appears in ACS' Chemical Research in Toxicology, a monthly journal.