Smoking may raise the risk of Covid-19 by elevating enzymes that allow the coronavirus to gain access into lung cells, according to a new study.<\/p>\n
Smokers and people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease may have elevated levels of an enzyme called ACE-2, which helps the virus enter cells in their lungs, where it replicates, a study published in the European Respiratory Journal Thursday showed.<\/p>\n
Obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and other chronic conditions have emerged as factors that make people vulnerable to Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus that\u2019s sweeping the world in a pandemic.<\/p>\n
The research, led by Janice Leung, a respirologist at St. Paul\u2019s Hospital in Vancouver, is an observational study based on data emerging from China and was peer reviewed.<\/p>\n
In China, where the mortality rate is higher for men than women, about half of males smoke, according to the World Health Organization. That compares with some 2% for females.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere has never been a better time to quit smoking to protect yourself from Covid-19, \u201d Leung said.<\/p>\n
Samples were taken from the lungs of 21 patients with COPD and 21 people not suffering from COPD. Higher levels of ACE-2 were found both in COPD patients and current smokers.<\/p>\n
The researchers also cross-referenced their findings with two existing study groups that include more test subjects, and came to the same conclusion.<\/p>\n
Michael R. Bloomberg, founder and majority owner of Bloomberg News parent Bloomberg LP, has campaigned and given money in support of a nationwide ban on flavored e-cigarettes and tobacco.<\/p>\n