Hey guys, I've been a social smoker for about 7 years now, but maybe
it's time to quit.
It's not a recent article, but a friend of mine sent it to me, and
thought I'd share it.

"Smokers' blindness risk 'doubled'", BBC News, September 6, 2005,
Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4217010.stm

Smokers are twice as likely as non-smokers to lose their sight in later
life, experts warn.

The link between age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and smoking is
now as robust as that between smoking and lung cancer, they say.

Yet many smokers are still unaware that their habit could cost them
their sight.

AMD Alliance UK and the Royal National Institute of the Blind are
calling for specific warnings on cigarette packets.

They would also like the government to fund an awareness campaign to
alert people to the dangers of smoking, as well as the introduction of
a complete ban on smoking in all enclosed public places across the UK.

AMD usually develops after a person reaches 50 years and affects the
central part of the retina of the eye.

It is the UK's leading cause of sight loss - there are around 500,000
people in the UK with AMD.

An estimated 54,000 people have the condition as a result of smoking.

Ignorance

Yet a report by AMD Alliance UK reveals that only 7% of people know
that AMD affects the eyes, based on a survey of 1,023 UK adults.

However, seven out of 10 smokers would either stop smoking permanently
(41%) or cut down (28%) if they thought it could harm their eyesight.

Studies have shown that people who stopped smoking 20 years ago have a
similar risk of developing AMD as non-smokers do and the risk starts to
decrease after 10 years of not smoking.

Steve Winyard, RNIB's head of campaigns and chairman of AMD Alliance
UK, said: "Smoking is the only proven cause of AMD that people can do
anything about, yet people are not aware of the link and most people
have not even heard of the condition.

"The message is simple: do not take up smoking and if you do - stop.

"People also need to make sure they have regular eye tests to check
their eyes are healthy - an eye test can save your sight."

Nick Astbury, president of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, said:
"This is a chilling statistic but it's not too late to give up."

A spokeswoman from the Department of Health said "We know that for
people to change their behaviour we need to communicate the facts about
smoking, as well as provide support to help them quit."

She said there were campaigns raising the awareness of the health
dangers of smoking and passive smoking.

However, she said the public were less supportive of measures to make
all bars and pubs smoke free.

She said they were clamping down on tobacco advertising, but that
warnings on cigarette packets were determined by, and therefore a
matter for, the European Commission.

The British Medical Association said it supported the call for AMD
warnings on cigarette packs.

There are two types of AMD, wet and dry. Some 90% of cases are dry AMD,
which cannot be treated.

The remaining 10% are wet AMD, which can be treated.