Smokers less likely to survive a heart attack, study finds

A quarter of all deaths in UK are caused by heart and circulatory diseases

A quarter of all deaths in Britain are caused by heart and circulatory diseases (PA)

Non-smokers have a higher chance of surviving a heart attack than smokers, a new study has found.

According to researchers at Jordan University of Science and Technology in Irbid, levels of Alpha-1 Anti Trypsin (A1AT) – a protein in the liver that protects the body’s tissues – were “significantly less” in smokers than in non-smokers.

However, no difference was detected in hypertensive (people with high blood pressure) and non-hypertensive individuals.