A study of identical twins has uncovered shocking results after one twin smoked while the other didn’t.
If you have ever wondered what exactly the effects of smoking have on your appearance, then look no further because one study has revealed just how the habit changes you.
This comes after a team of researchers from Ohio analyzed the physical differences between sets of identical twins where one is a smoker and the other is not.
This has culminated in the confirmation that smoking does in fact age you.
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The study was conducted at the Department of Plastic Surgery at Case Western Reserve University and involved the research of 79 sets of twins whose ages ranged from 18 to 78.
Each individual had their photos taken and were divided into two groups, with the first group consisting of 45 sets of twins where one twin smoked and the other didn’t, while the second group was made up of all smokers but one twin had smoked over five years longer than the other.
Analyzing the twins’ facial features, researchers noted that in the first group, the twin who smokes looked older than the other one 57% of the time.
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In the second group, the twin who had smoked longer looked older 63% of the time.
In the study report, which was published in the Journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, it said: “Smoking twins compared with their nonsmoking counterparts had worse scores for upper eyelid skin redundancy, lower lid bags, malar bags, nasolabial folds, upper lip wrinkles, lower lip vermillion wrinkles, and jowls.
“Lower lid hyperpigmentation in the smoking group fell just short of statistical significance. Transverse forehead wrinkles, glabellar wrinkles, crow’s feet, and lower lip lines accentuated by puckering did not have a statistically significant differences in scores.
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“Among twins with greater than 5 years’ difference in smoking duration, twins who had smoked longer had worse scores for lower lid bags, malar bags, and lower lip vermillion wrinkles.”
Dr Bahman Guyuron, who led the research team, said: “This study confirms some of what was believed in the most scientific way possible. With longer follow-up, we believe that every smoking twin might have exhibited a difference in aging.”
Guyuron added: “Smoking reduces the collagen formation, results in collagen degradation and reduces the skin circulation. Additionally, nicotine reduces the skin thickness. All of these reduce skin elasticity and (cause) premature aging.”