Science Daily reported that in a recent study by Penn State, researchers found that higher concentrations of melanin (the colour pigment in skin and hair) may be putting darker pigmented smokers at increased risk for nicotine dependence. So essentially people with darker skin would be more at risk than fair skinned people. 

Gary King, professor of biobehavioral health, Penn State told Science Daily, “The point of the study is that, if in fact, nicotine does bind to melanin, populations with high levels of melanin could indicate certain types of smoking behavior, dependence, and health outcomes that will be different from those in less pigmented populations and the addiction process may very well be longer and more severe.”

More research on smokers with various skin types/tones, but it’s definitely one more reason to quit smoking (hopefully you already have).

Tags: health and smoking, science daily, smoking and your skin

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