SMOKING OF BEEDIES AND CATARACT - CADMIUM AND VITAMIN-C IN THE LENS AND BLOOD

Estimation of cadmium and vitamin C was performed in the blood and len s of smokers in three age groups up to a maximum age of 58, habituated to smoking a minimum of 10 beedies a day for many years, as well as t hose of non-smokers in the same age groups. Only nuclear cataracts wit h or without posterior or anterior subcapsular cataract were chosen. I t was found that there was a significant accumulation of cadmium in bo th the blood and the lens of the smokers. Such an accumulation of cadm ium might have a role in cataractogenesis in chronic smokers. In a sim ilar experiment, with smokers and non-smokers of two age groups up to a of 40, both without increased levels of cadmium were found in the bl ood of smokers only, though the extent of accumulation was not as high as in chronic smokers of higher age groups. Vitamin C content of lens was on the lower side of normal in both chronic smokers of beedies in the two age groups and non-smokers with nuclear cataract with or with out posterior and anterior subcapsular cataract, and there was no sign ificant change brought about by smoking. Vitamin C levels in blood wer e towards the lower side of the normal in smokers and non-smokers with and without cataract.