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Rank: Advanced Member  Groups: Registered
Joined: 3/8/2010 Posts: 914
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Hi All,
Just been reading about Nras Press Releases, very interesting. Why cant more be done to publicize that smoking may be a trigger for RA, more so than for asthma and bronchitis.
According to papers published The ' Tira Project ' by Professor Thomas Skogh professor in Rheumatology at Linköping University in Sweden. A target number of people were asked about smoking. Many of those who didn't smoke had lived with parents who smoked when they were a child. This could be the reason why so many, especially women are now being diagnosed all around the same time 48 - 50 average age but can be affected at any age. Smoking is not necessary the only cause but more than likely a contributing factor, and if more people knew about this it may make a significant difference to those diagnosed. Just out of interest How Many People online have smoked or lived with smokers as a child. I have never myself smoked but both my parents did.
Lorna
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Rank: Advanced Member  Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/3/2009 Posts: 1,740
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Hi Lorna thanks heading this up very interesting ,my parents smoked as did both grandmas,grandads and aunties,uncles all of whom smoked around us children. i never did. and they di tell my gran to not do this and also for ehr RA it made it alot worse. Melly cuddly cats make my world seem so much more fun
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Rank: Advanced Member  Groups: Registered
Joined: 2/18/2010 Posts: 1,098 Location: farningham kent
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Hi Lorna
Thanks for your post, I am 54 and recently dx both my parents were heavy smokers, and we lived in a very small house too. My sister, brother and myself have never smoked and all three of have health conditions although I am the only one with RA, my sister has heart problems. My mum had RA but as my GP put it back in the 80 s there was b...... all !
Take care, love Julia x
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Rank: Advanced Member  Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/3/2009 Posts: 1,110 Location: London
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I have heard this before, that smoking makes RA worse. Hadnt considered about second hand smoke. My dad always smoked, as did my grandad who we lived with when young. My sister and I both have RA, my brother is fine, and has always smoked. My sister and I smoked when young i.e. teens and twenties, but were not heavy smokers, around 5 a day, it was the fashion in the 70s and 80s I'm afraid, seemed trendy, and obviously no one knew the health risks then. Would be interesting to see how many of us lived with smokers, or had smoked themselves. BARBARA
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Rank: Advanced Member  Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/3/2009 Posts: 1,081
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 I still haven't managed to kick the habit I would be interested to hear if anyone has and can offer any tips on how they did it. My parents both smoked but mum gave it up 15 years ago and dad 10 yrs. I'm ashamed they have done it and I haven't. Julie
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Rank: Advanced Member
Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/4/2009
Posts: 336
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My Dad smoked, he died of pneumonia at 59.I smoked untill over 10 years ago, strangely I had stopped before I developed RA. No one in the family have RA.Glenys.
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Rank: Advanced Member  Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/3/2009 Posts: 1,582 Location: Oxfordshire
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Yes, RA is definitely affected by smoking. My maternal Grandmother who had RA too also smoked. Thankfully both my presents HATE smoking from growing up in smoke fumed homes. I did actually smoke in my wild child days but pregnancy soon put a stop to that. My greatest sadness is my Mark smokes but always in the garden. Hate it though.
Love,
Amanda
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Rank: Advanced Member
Groups: Registered
Joined: 3/4/2010
Posts: 576
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I grew up in a smoky house and always hated the smell and even the sight of smoking. I was diagnosed 2 months ago, just after my 50th birthday ... not my favourite present!
Maybe we just naturally rebel against our parents. I know one of my sons smokes, though he would never do it in front of me. 2 of them have asthma and I used to tell them they could die if they smoked..
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Rank: Advanced Member  Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/8/2009 Posts: 124 Location: Wolverhampton
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No one around me smoked whilst a child, nor now. Although I used to be a barmaid back in the day but only did that for about 18 months.
Nina
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Rank: Advanced Member Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/3/2009 Posts: 1,081
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I must mention that although I haven't been able to kick the habit - I don't smoke indoors ever.
Julie
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Rank: Advanced Member  Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/3/2009 Posts: 327
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Julie, I started smoking when I was 11, and gave up 3 years ago (I'm 62 now). I tried reading the Allan Carr (spelling) books, and they did help a bit, I managed to give up for a few days, but in the end I went to an Allan Carr clinic, and that's what finally helped. It still wasn't easy, but it was far easier than I'd ever found it before, and was a success. I'd tried the "give up smoking" clinic at the local hospital and found it totally useless.
Lorna, as an ex-smoker I know that however much they publicised the connection between smoking and RA it wouldn't have made the slightest difference to me, and I'm sure other smokers would be the same. We do tend to bury our heads in the sand about health issues.
Anthea x
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Rank: Advanced Member
Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/3/2009
Posts: 351
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I've never smoked and certainly wasn't smoking before diagnosis, age 6. Neither of my parents smoked either. We lived in the countryside with plenty of fresh air, exercise and home grown veg. Carol
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Rank: Advanced Member  Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/10/2009 Posts: 653 Location: Notts
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I have never smoked, my parents did for part of their lives, as did my brother who has COPD. I would think that there are many,many people whose parents smoked around them, but they did not contract RA.
Lyn
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Rank: Member
Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/7/2009
Posts: 21
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While I am a non smoker, I think smoking is just an excuse for anything unpleasant. There are more and more people suffering from different diseases and alergies despite the reduction in smoking across the world. If anything I believe it is more likely due to general pollution in the air and all the chemiicals used to preserve our foods. Of course I have nothing to show my ideas are anymore true than the anti smoking loobby.
Clive
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Rank: Advanced Member  Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/4/2009 Posts: 331 Location: South London
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I have to agree with Clive, there is a habit of jumping on a bandwagon or finding something or someone as a scapegoat. There are always something sensationalised in the media as causing a health issue. I believe that as we get older the body doesnt work as effectively and thats why we get these health conditions. Lifestyle choices are always listed as GPs as a reason for developing the illness but sometimes lifestyle choices arent choices - it could be that we dont handle stress or we live in a polluted environment and our food is genetically modified or some contamination along the food chainetc. Like demensia normally occurrs in people over 80 but in some people it can ocurr in the 30s/40s. Apparently I read somewhere that a majority of people with mental illness are smokers and are more likely to die from cancer! Did anyone see that programme about the tallest children. One boy had enlarged joints, so he cant really use his joints properly, and swollen eyes and it is just a condition he was born with. One girl was measured at 6 ft 10 at age of 12 and it was found the growing was caused by a tumour and although the cut the tumour out a couple of times it just keeps growing back. 
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Rank: Member
Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/5/2009
Posts: 19
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Hi, Both my parents smoked heavily througout my childhood. I started smoking at 15, but gave up at 45 (it was real hard but I am pleased I did it) and have never touched a cigarette since. I was diagnosed with RA at 53.
lizzie
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Rank: Advanced Member
Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/4/2009
Posts: 242
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Like Carol I have never smoked or ever lived with smokers. I was brought up with lots of homegrown food, and healthy living. I have suffered with very aggressive R.A for ten years, people can't believe how someone with such a healthy lifestyle before this disease started, can be so crippled with pain and joint destruction. I don't think smoking helps the disease but it certainly doesn't cause it.
In my family there is an aggressive R.A gene running through each generation, I am the unlucky one in my generation!!
Best wishes
Rebecca
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Rank: Advanced Member  Groups: Registered
Joined: 1/7/2010 Posts: 441 Location: Bristol
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Hi Lorna,
Both my parents smoked all through my childhood and in those days, there wasn't any of the publicity into the health hazards so they would smoke in the car, at home, in restaurants.
I started smoking aged seventeen and gave up in 2001 aged 31, two years before my first RA symptons.
Certainly an interesting possibility.
Joanna
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