18-year-old Torje Tungesvik Gilbert is among those who know that he might want a cigarette when the music is blaring out of the speakers at a party. – You dance, you’re tired, and then it’s a good excuse to go out and sit down for a bit. You get such a calming feeling. He only does it “occasionally”, and is not alone. In recent years, there has been a slight increase in women under the age of 25 who smoke occasionally, figures from Statistics Norway show. But the occasional smoking is also, according to the research, a life-threatening balancing act. The risk of dying from lung cancer by smoking occasionally is many times greater than if one does not smoke, according to a study presented by the European Respiratory Society (ERS). Another study from UiT Norway’s Arctic University in Tromsø from 2018 concluded that occasional smokers had a 38 percent higher risk of dying within 15 years, compared to those who never smoked. The daily smokers had a 105 percent increased risk, compared to those who never smoked. At Blindern in Oslo, several students say that it is not unusual to have a smoke at a party. – A lot of people think it doesn’t matter – I think a lot of people probably think that it’s almost harmless to have a smoke every now and then, or maybe a pack of 20 every now and then, that it doesn’t matter, says the lung specialist at the Cancer Section in Drammen Hospital, Odd Terje Brustugun. Brustugun, who is also a professor at the Department of Clinical Medicine at the University of Oslo, strongly warns against that perception. – Those who smoke a 20-pack every other weekend have an approximately tenfold increased risk of dying from lung cancer, compared to those who never smoke. Torje Tungesvik Gilbert says it is easy to forget this. – I think most people now know that smoking cigarettes is dangerous. And it’s not like I think when I go out and have a party smoke that this has zero consequences for me. Senior physician Dr. with the Cancer Department at Drammen Hospital, Odd Terje Brustugun, says the difference between smoking occasionally and every day is less than many people think. Photo: Azad Razaei / news – But that might not be what you think of when you’ve already had a little to drink. Then maybe the consequential thinking is not the strongest. More dangerous for women Figures from Statistics Norway say that the proportion of young women under the age of 25 who smoked occasionally increased in the period 2021 to 2023. The same applies to men between the ages of 25 and 35. While the proportion of young men under 25 who occasionally light a cigarette has decreased slightly. At the same time, the Ungdata study from 2024 shows that the proportion who smoke daily or weekly has increased by one percentage point, compared to the previous years. The doctor warns that it is more dangerous for women than for men to smoke a little or a lot. – Girls have an increased risk of developing lung cancer than boys, even with the same smoking pattern. So girls should definitely think extra carefully, says senior doctor Brustugun. He says one possible reason is that the lung volume is lower in women. There is less, and thus less air in the lungs. And there can be a higher concentration of the harmful substances in the lungs. According to Brustugun, almost 20 times more people die from lung cancer than from traffic accidents – Lung cancer is one of the most aggressive forms of cancer we have. Although the treatments have improved a lot in recent years, it is still the case that there is a very high proportion of those who get lung cancer, who die from the disease not too long after the diagnosis. do you smoke I never smoke 🤬 I have a cigarette now and then 😎 I smoke daily 😍 Show result The cancer is detected late Head of the Lung Cancer Association Kari Grønås is worried about the development. Head of the Lung Cancer Association, Kari Grønås, feels that more and more people are smoking now and then. Photo: Marianne Ytre-Eide / news – We now know that party smoking significantly increases the risk of lung cancer. And that is why we are worried. She says lung cancer is a fatal disease that is usually discovered when it is too late. It is often only discovered when it has spread to the body, which gives a very poor prognosis. Head of the Lung Cancer Association Kari Grønås is concerned about the development. Photo: Marianne Ytre-Eide / news – I think the party smoke has always been there, but I think it seems like there is more now than before. Torje feels it well on his body after a weekend of lots of partying and smoking. – I can feel it getting harder to run, getting short of breath. You know it right away. I see it on Strava, that yes, now I run much worse than I usually run. Published 23.08.2024, at 21.17
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Think many people don’t know how dangerous it is to smoke at parties – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
