Study Shows It's Never Too Late to Get Health Benefits of Quitting Smoking
Jump to full article: WebMD, 2008-05-06
Author: Salynn Boyles WebMD Medical News
Intro: The risk of dying from smoking-related causes drops significantly within just a few years of giving up cigarettes, even for longtime smokers, new research shows.
Within five years of quitting smoking, study participants experienced a 13% reduction in the risk of death from all causes, a 47% risk reduction in heart disease-related deaths, and a 27% reduction in the risk of death from stroke.
Within 20 years of quitting, the risk of dying among former smokers was similar to that of lifetime nonsmokers for most causes of death, with the exception of lung cancer.
The findings suggest that it is never too late to derive health benefits from giving up smoking, says researcher Stacey A. Kenfield, ScD, of the Harvard School of Public Health.
The study appears in the May 7 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association.
Jump to full article » |