Acute Effects of Smoking on Physical Endurance and Resting Circulation

The influence of smoking a cigarette or “pseudo-cigarette” on endurance times for a step test to exhaustion was compared for 19 male college students, using a balanced test-retest procedure. Blood pressures and pulse rates were markedly increased by smoking, but individuals classified as “tobacco-sensitive” by this test showed no greater change in endurance than “non-sensitives.” The endurance of the total group was not significantly influenced by smoking. The pattern of cardiovascular changes caused by smoking were similar to the changes reported for epinephrine, suggesting that the total effect is vasodilation, which over-rides the cutaneous vasoconstriction.