Background: Cigarette smoking is an important modifiable cardiovascular risk factor and exposure to active and passive smoking is associated with arterial stiffness. The aim of the study was to investigate the destructive effect of chronic cigarette smoking on arterial stiffness in Korean subjects. Method : From July 2004 to June 2008, 2,822 subjectives (1,014 females) were recruited in this study and were classified into smokers (n=753) and non-smokers (n=2,069). Arterial stiffness, brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) and heart-femoral pulse wave velocity (hfPWV), were measured using an automatic device (VP-2000, Colins, Japan). And, laboratory exam such as lipid profiles, C reactive protein (CRP) were measured in all subjects. Results : Male was predominant in smokers. In laboratory analysis, hs-CRP (3.01짹3.56 vs. 1.81짹1.95 mg/dL, p<0.01) was higher in smokers than non-smoker. Active smokers had significantly higher baPWV and hfPWV compared with nonsmokers (1090짹258 vs. 1040짹256 cm/sec in baPWV, p<0.01) after adjusting for covariates. Participants who smoked longer than 10 years had a higher baPWV than non-smokers (P=0.029) although no significant difference existed between those who had a smoking history of less than 10 years and those who had never smoked (P=0.423), even after adjusting for age, sex, and body mass index. Conclusion : Active cigarette smoking and chronic smoking are associated with marked arterial stiffness in Korea.