COVID-19 and Smoking Information

Published at 17 March, 2020.

The Chief Medical Officer has highlighted that smokers are more susceptible to respiratory infections making this an important time to encourage smokers to quit. ASH has had contact from smokers saying the current situation has given them the final push to quit, and asking for further information on quit support.

Smoking harm the immune system, reducing the bodies’ natural protection against infections, like coronavirus. Smokers are therefore at greater risk of:

• getting acute respiratory infections
• the infection lasting longer
• the infection being more serious than it would be for someone who does not smoke

These risks are also greater for people exposed to secondhand smoke, including children. It is therefore important to be sharing clear messages about the need to not smoke in the home.

Dr Nick Hopkinson, Reader in Respiratory Medicine at Imperial College London and Chair of ASH explains the relationship between smoking and COVID-19 and the key messages for smokers in the video below. Many thanks to Fresh for putting this together:

Research in the New England Journal of Medicine from COVID-19 patients in China, shows that these impacts are being seen among smokers with COVID-19. Among the research cohort, smokers were about 1.5 times more likely to see their disease progress to the severe stage compared to non-smokers. 

If you want to stop smoking, contact us today on 0800 612 0011.