No matter what their age, smokers can reap substantial health benefits by quitting. That’s the conclusion from a new meta-analysis of 17 studies. The statistics from these international studies show that current smokers are almost twice as likely as those who never smoked to die prematurely. (Half of all smokers who don’t quit eventually die of smoking-related illness.) Former smokers are also more likely to die before their time, but the risk decreases with the length of time since quitting. People who quit before age 40 have almost the same survival rates as those who never smoked. Many older smokers have convinced themselves that it is too late for them to bother quitting, but the analysis shows that even elderly smokers, 80 and older, can benefit.
[Archives of Internal Medicine, online June 11, 2012]
The People's Perspective on Medicine