Question: Does smoking after a meal increase the risk of cancer and emphysema?
A chain e-mail entitled "8 Don'ts After a Meal" advises readers not to "smoke after a meal because the bad effect (emphysema, cancer, etc.) of smoking a cigarette becomes ten times worse."
Answer: Smoking cigarettes is harmful to your health at any time. Cigarettes contain as many as 60 carcinogens (substances known to cause cancer), and the nicotine in cigarettes is highly addictive. The addictive nature of nicotine leads smokers to continue smoking, and makes quitting very difficult. The risk of cancer and emphysema is certainly related to what kind and how many cigarettes you smoke, but there is no good evidence that smoking after meals in particular increases this risk.
Beyond the risk of cancer, smoking may affect the management of your IBS, although the connection between smoking and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a complex one. Smoking worsens Crohn's disease, and people with Crohn's are strongly advised to quit. Some people with ulcerative colitis are diagnosed after they quit smoking, and it's speculated that the nicotine in cigarettes may have an effect on the smooth muscle of the colon. It is not recommended that anyone with ulcerative colitis take up smoking, or start smoking again, due to the numerous other health risks cigarette smoking poses.
Source:
National Cancer Institute. "Cigarette Smoking and Cancer: Questions and Answers." National Cancer Institute 4 Nov 2004. 7 May 2009.
