BACKGROUND Studies have demonstrated that secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure could impair endothelial function. However, the effect of SHS exposure specifically on microvascular endothelial function is not well understood. This study aimed to determine the effects of SHS exposure on microvascular endothelial function among non-smoking, generally healthy women. FINDINGS We studied 127 women; and ...

OBJECTIVE To assess different factors influencing adiponectinemia in obese and normal-weight women; to identify factors associated with the variation (Δ) in adiponectinemia in obese women following a 6-month weight loss program, according to surgical/non-surgical interventions. METHODS We studied 100 normal-weight women and 112 obese premenopausal women; none of them was on any medical treatm...

Examination of umbilical arteries and veins, and vessels in placental villi was carried out by electronmicroscopy in smoking and non-smoking mothers. Severe vascular changes were found in the smoking group. These findings suggest that similar changes may be present in the vessels of the newborn child. Stopping pregnant women from smoking may help to prevent CHD in their children in later life.

BACKGROUND The role of passive smoking on breast cancer risk was unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the association between passive smoking and breast cancer risk among Chinese women. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS A hospital-based case-control study, including 877 breast cancer cases and 890 controls, frequency-matched by age and residence, was conducted. A structured questionnaire was used t...

BACKGROUND Cigarette smoking is an established causal factor for atherosclerosis. However, the smoking effect on different echogenic components of carotid arterial wall measured by ultrasound is not well elucidated. METHODS Middle-aged men and women who had IMT measurement > or = 0.7 mm at baseline and follow-up were included (N = 413, age 40-60 years at baseline in 1995). Intima-media thickn...

BACKGROUND Cigarette smoking is a prominent risk factor for a wide range of diseases. The current study aimed to evaluate the impact of smoking on deaths from major smoking-related diseases (neoplasms, vascular diseases and respiratory diseases) in Chinese adults by estimating the potential gains in life expectancy (LE) that would accrue from eliminating deaths from these diseases, and to deter...

BACKGROUND Although smoking remains uncommon among Korean women, lung cancer mortality is rapidly escalating. METHODS We investigated the effects of spousal smoking in 160130 Korean women, aged 40-88, who received health insurance from the Korea Medical Insurance Corporation (KMIC). Exposure data were collected during medical examinations conducted between April 1992 and June 1994. The primar...

Smoking is a major cause of coronary heart disease for both men and women and a positive correlation between tobacco use and cerebrovascular disease has been also described. In addition, cigarette smoking is the most powerful risk factor predisposing to atherosclerotic peripheral artery disease. More recently, passive smoking has been also shown to represent an important risk factor for coronar...

OBJECTIVE To describe the trends in the prevalence of smoking, quitting and initiation among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women aged 18 years and over. METHODS Analysis of responses to smoking questions in national Indigenous surveys in 1994, 2002, 2004 and 2008. RESULTS Male Indigenous smoking prevalence fell significantly from 58.5% in 1994 to 52.6% in 2008, an absolute d...