Smoking is a major risk for several diseases including heart disease, stroke, and several cancers.
Even low-tar cigarettes and light smoking can increase the risk of heart disease substantially. There are now several alternative approaches to helping people stop smoking. These include nicotine-replacement patches and gum as well as oral medication. Homocysteine is a new risk factor that we are starting to learn more about. However, we do not know if treating homocysteine with vitamin therapy can reduce risk of heart attack or stroke.