Smokers Have Rapid Aging Defect

Smokers and People With Premature Aging Disease Suffer Same Cell Defect

By Daniel J. DeNoon
WebMD Health News, Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD
Feb. 6, 2009

Cigarette smoke causes the same cellular defect seen in people with Werner's syndrome -- a rare genetic disease that makes people age very fast.

Smoking speeds the aging process, causing smokers to die about 10 years before their time. Now researchers may have found a clue to this process, giving them unexpected new paths to treatment.

The clue comes from the observation that smokers aren't the only people who age too fast. In their 20s, people with a rare genetic disorder called Werner's syndrome get gray hair, thin skin, and hoarse voices.

They soon develop cataracts, diabetes, hardening of the arteries, and weak bones. In their 40s or 50s, they tend to die of heart disease and cancer.

Smokers also age prematurely and tend to die of heart disease and cancer. Might there be a link?

(More here.)