Smoking Disturbs the Intrinsic Tendencies of Autonomic Nervous System Reflected in the Bioelectric Potential at 12 Alarm Points: A Pilot Study.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of smoking on the bioelectrical potential (BEP) at 12 alarm points.

METHODS: A crossover study was conducted on 17 normal adult male smokers. The BEP was measured at 12 alarm points both before and after breathing through a filter (control) and smoking.

RESULTS: The participants were classified into three subtypes according to the way in which their BEP changed after having breathed through a filter: increasing, decreasing, and irregular types. Compared with breathing through a filter, smoking decreased the BEP in the increasing type, whereas it increased the BEP in the decreasing type. No significant changes were observed in the irregular-type participants.

CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that smoking increases sympathetic activity in smokers with a parasympathetic tendency, whereas it lessens sympathetic activity in smokers with a sympathetic tendency. Smoking does this by eliminating the intrinsic tendency of the autonomic nervous system, and these effects can be observed in the BEP at 12 alarm points.