Tobacco Smoke and Skin Aging

Abstract

As early as 1971, Daniell [1] found that tobacco smoking has a deleterious effect on the skin, and smoker's wrinkles are the typical clinical features of smokers. A recent epidemiological study has clearly shown that tobacco smoking is one of the numerous factors contributing to premature skin aging, which is dependent on age, sex, pigmentation, sun exposure history, alcohol consumption, and other factors [2-5]. In a further cross section study, sun exposure, pack years of smoking history, and potential confounding variables were assessed by questionnaire. Facial wrinkles were quantified using the Daniell score. Logistic statistical analysis of the data revealed that age, pack year, and sun exposure independently contributed to facial wrinkle formation [6]. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2010.