Effect of Cigarette Smoking on Serum Homocysteine and Folic Acid Levels in Apparently Healthy Male Smokers

Effects of cigarette smoking on serum homocysteine and folic acid levels

Abstract

Background: Globally, smoking cigarette is one of the most common reason for demise which is preventable. In those who smoke ,altered levels of serum homocysteine and that of folic acid have been noted to aggravate the development of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular complications. Therefore. the level of these two sensitive biomarkers may aid in detecting early the changes leading up to such complications in those who smoke.Aim: The aim of the study was to observe the serum levels of homocysteine and folic acid in smokers and compare these parameters with that of non smokers .Materials and Method: This research work (cross sectional in nature) was conducted on 90 apparently healthy male recruits (age between 20-60 years) in Sir Salimullah Medical College (SSMC),Dhaka.The department in which the study took place was the Physiology department. The duration of the research was one year (July 2019 – June 2020) .Sixty out of the ninety recruits were considered as group A and those included in this group were smokers. This group A was further split in to 2 groups (Group A₁ and A₂) in accordance to the pack-years of smoking. The A1 group consisted of those having history of 5-10 pack years of smoking and the A2 group included those having >10 pack-years  history of smoking. Thirty non smokers with matching age and body mass index (BMI) were included as the group for making comparison with the study group and was termed as group B. The parameters assessed were levels of homocysteine and folic acid in the serum.Results:The study observed the level of homocysteine in serum was significantly greater in recruits who smoke  than those recruits who do not smoke with p value <0.001.The levels of folic acid in serum noted to be lower significantly (p<0.001) in smoking recruits when compared to non smoking recruits.Such alterations were more profound in the smokers with >10 pack-year of smoking history. Besides this, positive correlation between pack year history of smoking and level of homocysteine in serum (r = 0.948) and the relationship was highly significant statistically (p<0.001) .Levels of folic acid in serum were  negatively correlated (r = - 0.844 and r = - 0.863) with pack-year of smoking history which were significant statistically (p<0.001 and p<0.001). Conclusion: The present study reveals that serum homocysteine level is significantly higher whereas levels of folic acid in serum are significantly lower among smokers and these changes are more marked in the smokers with >10 pack-years of smoking history.

J Med Coll Women Hosp.2025; 21 (2):83-90