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Smoking causes diseases in nearly every organ of the body, according to a report on from the U.S. Surgeon General.

Patient Safety Monitor Alert, June 1, 2004

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Smoking causes diseases in nearly every organ of the body, according to a report on smoking and health released by U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona on May 27.

Although the surgeon general has previously shown that smoking is a definite cause of certain cancers and cardiovascular diseases, this latest report for the first time conclusively links smoking to such diseases as leukemia, cataracts, pneumonia, and cancers of the cervix, kidney, pancreas, and stomach.

"We've known for decades that smoking is bad for your health, but this report shows that it's even worse than we knew," says Carmona. "The toxins from cigarette smoke go everywhere the blood flows. I'm hoping this new information will help motivate people to quit smoking and convince young people not to start in the first place."

The report states that smoking kills an estimated 440,000 Americans each year. On average, men who smoke cut their lives short by 13.2 years, and female smokers lose 14.5 years.

Smoking remains the leading preventable cause of death and disease, although obesity is quickly catching up. Statistics indicate that more than 12 million Americans have died from smoking since the 1964 report of the surgeon general, and another 25 million Americans alive today will most likely die of a smoking-related illness.

The new report, The Health Consequences of Smoking: A Report of the Surgeon General, concludes that smoking reduces the overall health of smokers, contributing to such conditions as hip fractures, complications from diabetes, increased wound infections following surgery, and a wide range of reproductive complications.

The 960-page report also highlights potential next steps that can be used to prevent and control tobacco use and reduce the harmful health effects of smoking. It concludes that quitting smoking has immediate and long-term benefits, reducing risks for diseases caused by smoking and improving health in general.

Most hospitals continue to allow staff to smoke during working hours, according to an online survey of 76 Patient Safety Monitor subscribers.

About 80% of readers indicated that their hospital allows staff and employees to smoke in designated areas. About 20% indicated that their campus is smoke-free and that employees must go off-site to smoke.

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