Abstract
The 2004 US Surgeon General’s Report on the Health Consequences of Smoking reviewed and cited over 1,600 different sources. Taken all together, some of this evidence is so convincing that the Report infers a cause and effect relationship between smoking and certain diseases: lung cancer, oral cancer, bladder cancer, cervical cancer, coronary heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (emphysema and chronic bronchitis), reduced female fertility, premature delivery, and even cataracts. While benefits of not smoking are clear and well defined, smoking continues to be prevalent throughout the world. A unique graphic, functioning as a decision aid, has been developed to enable physicians and patients to jointly assess the risks associated with smoking cigarettes. Findings of two major studies are presented in a way that puts the complexities of risk analysis in terms patients can understand. Therefore, patients will be empowered to make well-informed decisions about their health. This decision aid has been successfully used to assist patients in determining their level of acceptable risk.
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Rifkin, E., Lazris, A. (2015). Health Effects of Smoking. In: Interpreting Health Benefits and Risks. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-11544-3_10
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-11544-3_10
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