What happens to your blood pressure when you smoke

In the short and long term, smoking cigarettes can raise your blood pressure and increase your risk of hypertension (high blood pressure). On the other hand, quitting smoking has an almost immediate beneficial effect on blood pressure, regardless of the duration or quantity of smoking.

1. Chemicals in tobacco smoke raise blood pressure

The effects of tobacco smoke on blood pressure include:

• Acute effects: From the first puff, people feel a sudden (acute) increase in blood pressure. Smoking a cigarette can cause an increase in blood pressure of up to 20 millimeters of mercury (mmHg) for up to 30 minutes.
• Over time: Smoking regularly will almost inevitably lead to sustained (chronic) elevations, known as hypertension.

When you smoke tobacco, you expose your body to more than 7,000 chemicals that can affect your circulatory system and blood pressure. Several contribute:

• Nicotine: This highly addictive chemical acts directly on the nervous system. It induces feelings of pleasure and triggers the release of the hormone norepinephrinewhich causes narrowing of blood vessels (vasoconstriction) and an increase in blood pressure.
• Carbon monoxide: Burning tobacco releases carbon monoxide into your lungs and bloodstream. These molecules bind strongly to red blood cells, causing blood oxygen levels to drop as oxygen molecules are displaced. To compensate, the heart will start beating faster, causing an increase in blood pressure.
• Oxidative stress: Smoking releases substances (such as hydrogen peroxide, quinones, cadmium, and nickel) that create an imbalance between harmful free radicals and helpful antioxidants, called oxidative stress. Increased levels of free radicals can contribute to hypertension by damaging blood vessels, leading to hardening and narrowing.

2. Your risk increases the longer you smoke and longer

Studies have shown that smoking, independent of all other risk factors, increases the risk of hypertension by up to 30%.. The duration and amount you smoked are also taken into account.

This is demonstrated by a 2020 study of Hispanic adults in which the risk of hypertension among current smokers increased along with their “pack-years” of smoking (calculated by multiplying the number of cigarette packs smoked per day by the number of years smoked).

The six-year study, involving more than 7,000 adults, found that the “tipping point” for hypertension occurred after 5 pack-years, increasing the risk by more than 30%.

Five pack years might mean you smoke one pack (20 cigarettes) per day for 5 years, half a pack (10 cigarettes) per day for 10 years, or five cigarettes per day for 20 years.

3. Increased blood pressure can lead to serious cardiovascular problems

In the long term, smoking can lead to lasting elevations in blood pressure due to vascular damage and the development of vascular disorders. atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). When blood pressure readings are consistently 130/80 mmHg or higher, a person is said to have hypertension.

The effects of smoking are of concern because it can independently increase systolic blood pressure (the upper value of blood pressure) by an average of 6 mmHg compared to non-smokers.

Such an increase may meet the diagnostic definition of hypertension. It can also increase the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). According to a 2020 study in JAMA Cardiology, every 10 mmHg increase in systolic blood pressure increases the risk of cardiovascular disease by 53%.

High blood pressure significantly increases the risk of heart disease and stroke, leading causes of death in the United States. Smoking, meanwhile, is the leading cause of preventable death.

4. Quitting smoking can help

No matter how long or how much you’ve been smoking, quitting can significantly reduce the risk of hypertension and its complications. The benefits can be immediate.

According to the American Heart Association:

• Within 20 minutes of stoppingyour blood pressure drops from nicotine-induced highs.
• After several dayscarbon monoxide levels in your blood return to normal.
• After two weeksyour circulation and lung function begin to improve.
• Within 12 monthsclearer, deeper breathing gradually returns.
• After 3 to 6 yearsthe risk of heart disease is cut in half.
• After 5 to 10 yearsthe risk of oral cancer is reduced by 50%.
• After 10 yearsthe risk of lung cancer also drops by half.
• After 15 yearsthe risk of heart disease is similar to that of a non-smoker.

Studies have shown that quitting smoking can reduce your systolic blood pressure by up to 8 mmHg and your diastolic (lower) blood pressure by up to 4 mmHg after 12 weeks.