TUESDAY, March 21 (HealthDay News) -- Continued heavy smoking of more than 20 cigarettes a day significantly increases the risk of dying in middle age, while quitting strongly decreases death risk even at older ages, according to a study in the March 21 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
In what is considered the largest and longest study of smoking consequences in men and women, Stein Emil Vollset, M.D., of the University of Bergen in Norway, and colleagues studied 24,505 women and 25,034 men born between 1925 and 1941. They found that 2,333 women and 4,680 men died in middle age, defined as 40 to 70 years old.
Among women, never-smokers accounted for 9 percent of deaths in middle age and smokers accounted for 26 percent. Among men, never-smokers accounted for 14 percent of middle age deaths and continuing heavy smokers accounted for 41 percent. The researchers conclude that gender differences in all-cause mortality were related to lower cardiovascular mortality rates among women.
The study shows that "the benefits of smoking cessation were stronger for those who quit at younger ages (under 40 years and 40 to 49 years of age)," states the author of an accompanying editorial. "Nevertheless, the beneficial effect of quitting smoking was also evident for those quitting at older ages (50 to 59 years of age). These data support the public health message that 'it's never too late to quit.'"
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Editorial
