Smoking before age 15 linked to higher COPD risk

Childhood smoking before age 15 increases a person's risk of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to a new study. The study is published in the November 2024 issue of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases: Journal of the COPD Foundation, a peer-reviewed, open-access journal.

COPD is an inflammatory lung disease, comprising several conditions, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema, and can be caused by genetics and irritants like smoke or pollution. The disease affects more than 30 million Americans and is the fourth leading cause of death worldwide.

A previous study using data from the 2020 National Health Interview Survey showed that COPD was more prevalent in adults who began smoking prior to 15 years of age (childhood smoking) compared to those who began after 15 years of age, regardless of their current smoking status and lifetime cigarette use.

In this new study, the authors expanded on previous research and examined whether childhood smoking before age 15 increased the likelihood of a person developing COPD later in life, even after accounting for possible secondhand smoke exposure. The new research examined a nationally representative sample of adults 40 years of age and older from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) study.

Our study suggests that a person with a childhood smoking history has an increased risk of developing COPD, regardless of current smoking status, smoking duration, cigarette pack years and exposure to secondhand smoke. Critical lung development occurs in childhood and early adolescence, making children's lungs particularly susceptible to damage caused by cigarette smoking. These findings highlight the need for additional public health efforts to reduce, and ultimately prevent, childhood smoking."

Laura M. Paulin, MD, M.H.S, pulmonologist at Dartmouth Health's Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center and senior author of the study