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Smoking on an empty stomach triples cancer risk
Last reviewed: 30.06.2025
Two studies have found that smokers who light up immediately after waking up in the morning are at higher risk of developing lung, head and neck cancer.
Joshua Muscat of the Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine and his colleagues examined 4,775 lung cancer patients and a control group of 2,835 people. All subjects were heavy smokers. Those who received a dose of nicotine 31–60 minutes after waking up were 1.31 times more likely to be diagnosed with lung cancer than those who were inhaling carcinogenic smoke an hour after waking up.
But the greatest risk was faced by tobacco addicts who smoked within half an hour of waking up. They were at 1.79 times greater risk than other smokers.
The second study involved 1,055 patients with head and neck cancer and a control group of 795 people (all subjects had a history of smoking). Compared to those who took a drag an hour after getting out of bed, those who lit their first cigarette 31–60 minutes after waking up were 1.42 times more likely to develop cancer; those who took a cigarette less than half an hour after sleep were 1.59 times more likely to develop cancer.
The findings clearly demonstrate how harmful smoking in the early morning is. People who light up as soon as they wake up have higher levels of nicotine and other tobacco toxins in their bodies. They may also be more dependent on nicotine than those who think about cigarettes at least half an hour after waking up. According to scientists, a combination of genetic and personal factors may be responsible for the high dependence on smoking.
By the way, the first time that experts from Pennsylvania spoke about the harm of smoking before breakfast was in 2009. At that time, they drew conclusions based on the results of a study of 252 healthy volunteers.
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