Why Smoking and IQ is a Deadly Pair-up

By Brian Welsch

Aside from addiction and health problems, smoking can also cause more damaging effects on a person by targeting one of the most important organs of the body: the brain. Being the center of moods, conscious ideas, unconscious thoughts and body processes, the brain is the main organ, which dictates how a person should function. Even though the connection between smoking and IQ is not yet totally established, there are already numerous studies which proved that long-term smoking can lessen mental proficiency, memory, and overall thinking skills of a person. Basically, the brain is affected by smoking because it is connected to the lungs through numerous arteries, which serve as the passageway of the oxygen needed by the brain. Thus, whenever a person drags on a tobacco stick, the harmful chemicals on it are also sent into the brain.

Probably the most hazardous chemical that causes smoking and IQ a bad pair is nicotine. The moment nicotine is inhaled, it only takes ten short seconds to reach the brain wherein it stays active and affect the mental processes for approximately 20-40 minutes. Once this substance is already present in the brain, nicotine can control and change some of the specialized receptor cells important for controlling the mood, memory, and other thinking processes of a person. Once the receptor cells are triggered, the overall chemistry of the brain is changed, affecting the smoker’s overall function.

Besides from lowering the IQ, smoking can also wreck damage on emotions that often causes anxiety, irritability, and depression on a person. The more nicotine is consumed, the more changes happen in the brain, causing permanent damage on IQ. Another reason why smoking and IQ are connected is because of the fact that smoking causes some blockage on the carotid artery, which is considered essential in providing blood supply to the brain cells. Brain cells, when deprived of enough blood supply easily die and cause the brain to run low on brain cells to use for thinking. Also, those who smoke are more prone into having cerebral thrombosis or stroke.