Are smokers protected against COVID-19?

A Chinese study shows that among COVID-19 patients, few smoke and/or have COPD. This could be interpreted as meaning that smokers are protected against the COVID-19 virus. They suggested that because of more superficial breathing, the virus would not reach as deep into the respiratory tract and would therefore cause fewer infections.

Other researchers hypothesized that the medications COPD patients take could protect against COVID-19. However, these findings are based on a very small number of patients and the conclusions are highly hypothetical. We cannot conclude that smokers would be less susceptible to COVID-19.

Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7083240/

Author: Prof. Dr. Dirk Devroey - Latest update: 2022-12-01 - Copyright: Clinifacts 2024