Not long ago, Swedish scientists had just discovered that smokers are prone to suffer from lumbar spine disease. A study in the United States also found that smoking may aggravate the aging and degeneration of cervical discs.
Cervical intervertebral discs play an important role in relieving the compression of the spine. As people grow older, the cervical intervertebral disc gradually loses moisture, wears and shrinks, which in turn causes neck pain. In the new study, the research team of the University of Emory University of America researched 182 The human CT images were analyzed. It was found that the cervical disc strain of smokers was more severe than that of non-smokers. This, to some extent, suggests that smoking may increase the natural wear of cervical intervertebral discs.
The study's lead author, Dr. Mitchell Levitt of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Emory University, pointed out that the study found for the first time that smoking may be associated with chronic neck pain - it can damage the blood vessels and result in insufficient access to the cervical disc. Nutrients, this is why smoking affects the health of the cervical spine. The researchers appealed that the findings should serve as a reminder to smokers to quit smoking.
