Health effects of tobacco use in women

A large amount of data is currently available on the myriad diseases linked to tobacco use (Doll et al.,1994). The deleterious effects of smoking were suspected in the last century or even before, but it is only recently that the magnitude of the negative impact of tobacco on health has become clear, and the evidence is becoming stronger every day. During the second half of this century, hundreds of studies became available that allowed us to estimate correctly the full burden of tobacco-related morbidity and mortality. Yet, as a woman, even more than as a cancer specialist or public health expert, I am greatly concerned by the relative scarcity of valid studies dealing specifically with women. I wish to describe the current state of knowledge on the health effects of tobacco use in women and, from this assessment, to derive recommendations on action to be taken to promote health in the population of the world at large.