JAKARTA - The Indonesian Doctors Association (IDI), the Indonesian Lung Doctors Association (PDPI), the Eijkman Institute for Molecular Biology, Ministry of Research and Technology, and the One-Voice Tobacco Control Community consider that smoking increases the risk of corona virus transmission.
Head of Eijkman Kemenristek Amin Soebandrio explained, symptoms of corona infection in general are fever, cough, shortness of breath, and difficulty breathing, which are related to the lungs.
Meanwhile, the toxic and nicotine content in a person who smokes causes an increase in ACE2 receptors in the lungs. When these receptors increase, the cells in the body will facilitate the virus that becomes infected with the corona virus.
"In a sense, smoking increases cells like ports that facilitate transmission of the corona virus. Because smoking can change lung cells to become more susceptible to corona infection because there are cells that facilitate the entry of the virus," said Amin at the IDI Office, Central Jakarta, Friday, March 13th.
By increasing ACE2 and facilitating the virus, it will further increase the expression of DCS. In effect, this expression will increase the lung inflammatory response (pneumonia), a symptom similar to the corona virus.
In the same place, the Chairperson of the Working Group on Cigarette Problems of the Indonesian Lung Doctors Association, Feni Fitriani, clarified that information about smoking can reduce a person's potential for corona infection, on the grounds that the body warms up so that the virus dies.
In fact, according to Feni, without the transmission of the corona virus from only positive people, smokers experience vulnerability in the airways, which is a symptom similar to corona. In fact, 80 to 90 percent of people with lung cancer are smokers.
"Because the effect of smoking is long-term after 20 years, not as fast as COVID-19, people are ignorant. So, delaying quitting smoking, maybe hoping they don't get it," explained Feni.
So, with this explanation, Feni hopes that active smokers can reduce their consumption or stop simultaneously, both conventional and electric smokers.
"With the presence of corona, smokers have more motivation to quit for fear of being exposed to the COVID-19 virus," he said.
Head of Eijkman Kemenristek Amin Soebandrio added, several findings mention the relationship between smoking and the characteristics of patients infected with corona.
A group of researchers from China, namely the Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, University of Florida, and the Chinese Center of Disease Control and Prevention said that the severity of corona in male patients was higher than that of women. This is because most men in China are heavy smokers.
"This study also states that 61.5 sufferers of severe pneumonia due to the corona virus are men, and the death rate is 4.45 percent. This figure is higher than female patients, namely 1.25 percent," said Amin.
Kretek Community Response
This statement brought a lopsided gaze from the head of the Kretek Community, Aditia Purnomo. To VOI, Aditia felt that someone should not discredit smokers in the midst of the corona virus outbreak.
"There are so many people who do not smoke who are also affected by the corona virus. Do not overdo the anti-smoking campaign at this tough time," said Adit in a short message.
After all, he said, the size of the potential for corona virus transmission comes from direct contact (contact tracing) with people with corona, as well as how high a person's immune system is.
"In the position of a smoker, the important thing is to stay healthy. Everyone has the potential to contract the corona virus," he concluded.
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