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AIN'T IT KOOL

Quit Smoking by 44 and It's Like You Never Started

Good news for the younger addicts among you

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by Dain Fitzgerald

Staff Writer t

"This will be your last day, got it?" / Image: my7s.com

Who says there are no second chances?

Medical experts at the University of Toronto have collected data on hundreds of thousands of Americans, smoker and non-smoker alike, and discovered that folks who cease their puffing by the age of 44 - presumably cold turkey - die only one year earlier than those who've never touched a butt. And for those who quit by 54, the gap is only four years, reports NBC.

It's news that while encouraging, shouldn't be taken as a valid excuse to smoke as long as you quit by middle age, warns researcher Dr. Prabhat Jha. He points out that "men who quit by 40 are still 20% more likely to die in a given year than those who never smoke," primarily from cancer, stroke, heart disease and other health problems linked to smoking. By contrast, those who continue smoking past age 40 are 200% more likely to die in any given year than lifelong non-smokers, according to the study.

Via NBC and the New England Journal of Medicine.
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  • o
    Sonny
    !
    Why are you worried about whether or not "President Obama" quit smoking?!? Have you asked if John Beohner has put out his butts as well?!? You hate the man so much that many of your posts are so irrational...
  • u
    ErnestPayne
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    @AntiPorcheria ROFLOL. Yes. Another university hungry for funds. Have a hunch American universities would be "squeamish" at this sponsorship.
  • bsking
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    The university of nofunatall in europia says if you quit having sex at age 32you will die whenever your number comes up , but it will feel like you have been living forever...
  • MarkJM
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    I quit years back. Best decision I have made. Despite the initial weight gain, all the positives outweigh the negatives. Since quitting I have, seen more money saved, developed a better sense of taste, have more energy, smell better, I could go on and on. Point in hand, quit smoking. Live longer and enjoy life more.
  • u
    kyrebel
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    I totally agree. I smoked for 16 years and took chantix for 2 weeks. I haven't smoked for almost a year. Best and easiest thing I've ever done.
  • MarkJM
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    @kyrebel I quit straight cold turkey. But I heard a lot of good things about Chantix from those who used it. Good for you.
  • u
    seedtick
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    Well, I too quit smoking many years ago. I did not quit for health reasons. I quit because I got tired of being "owned" by this filthy habit. First thing I did after waking up each morning was reach for a cigarette. The last thing I did before going to bed was smoke a cigarette. And I smoked every chance I got during the day.
    Today, however, one thing that torques me up is seeing people on welfare smoking. Who's buying them?
  • jessejaymes
    !
    The man has a point. I quit smoking 3 packs a day. I figure by today's prices I save about 450.00 a month or 5,000 a year. Yet welfare people that I've know almost always smoke. Who is paying for this?
  • Thunderchicken
    !
    That's been talked about since the `60s. In my experience it's probably true. A few years after I quit, my lung capacity was much better than when I was smoking. (Obviously I don't know what my lungs look like.)
  • VVP
    !
    It seems reasonable. Below 44 you are still in your biological prime and your body is much more able to cope with injury and heal itself. Once you go "over the hill" it is a constant battle to negate any illness and injury to mitigate the damage they do. 45 and onward your body just cannot keep up the healing processes the same way they once did and every little ailment takes a far greater toll.

    But even still what does it really matter? If its not the tobacco that gets you, it will be the processed foods, or the alcohol, or the side effects to the perscription drugs, or the teenager in the SUV texting who Tbones you running a red light or any other type of death. If it is your time, it is your time and while you could have led a better life, even the best life you could lead would put you in peril to events well beyond your control. Such is part of being human and being alive and what makes every moment we have on this rock meaningful and important not to squander.
  • MadAmerican
    !
    Once your lungs are damaged and those little pores are clogged by tar there is no going back. Lungs cannot heal themselves! I do believe that quitting anytime is good however once you do start getting older with the damage already done, then you might as well go ahead and slowly sufficate yourself to death!
  • u
    AceLuby
    !
    This is simply wrong. Lungs can, and do, heal themselves, like any part of your body. If you have a scrape on your knee and keep scraping it day after day for years on end, sure it won't heal, but as soon as you stop scraping it starts healing. Same concept.
  • o
    NavinRJohnson
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    @AceLuby
    Father in law died at 58 from emphazima and hadn't smoked for 22 years. You suppose is was the bad air at the bank he worked at the entire time?
  • MadAmerican
    !
    @AceLuby My dad quit smoking in 78. Has COPD the last 10 years from it. They do not heal themselves, just like if you have a heart attack you often get "scarring" which weakens the heart and never heals. I'm not a doctor but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night. lol Luby-you are kidding yourself on this! Ever heard of Mesothelioma? Naval workers-damaged lungs never recover. Black lung-never recover. The lungs are not skin, nor muscle. Do some research and if you do smoke pay attention to what is going on before it's too late for you.
  • u
    BelinKS
    !
    My dad quit smoking cold turkey when I was a very little girl (you might say toddler)and they found out I had asthma. He never touched another cigarette! He died in 2009 from lung cancer. The same type of carcinoma as smokers. Young people, don't let this article fool you. If you don't smoke, never start! If you have already started no matter how long, quit now! My father was 29 years old.(i was 3) when he quit smoking. He was 16 when he started smoking, but not heavily until between 18 and 20. He died of lung cancer 35 years after quitting smoking. The damage had aready been done! My dad was a very heathy man! He worked out everyday at a gym. On the weekends he got a pretty good work out making sure his land and yard around their house was looking very nice. He watched what he ate and didn't drink alcohol! He had no other factors. He was a CPA with his own practice and owned a large restaurant. Before we moved he was a partner in a large prestigious firm and owned a restaurant.
  • Russell797
    !
    Your dad fell on the negative side of the statistical curve. There are no guarantees when playing the odds, but you can improve your chances. That's all this study is saying.
  • u
    BelinKS
    !
    @Russell797
    Peter Jennings died of lung cancer after he had stopped 20 years before.
    I just don't want this article to influence the idea that a person can smoke until 44 and be fine. That's not the truth.
  • Real4WheelDrv
    !
    How is this news? They had a list of like 10 different effects that your body can heal if you stop smoking, from 12 minutes since your last cig up to several years in my Health textbook in '99...oh waiiiit...this is another group of scientists who get money for conducting the same studies over and over again...oh well...at least it was Canada footing the bill on this one.
  • Medicinebow
    !
    I've watched 2 family members die from causes directly related to smoking. Its sad to watch a person go in that fashion. If anyone wants to stop I say it may be the best decision of your life and highly encourage it.
  • Russell797
    !
    This is not really a new revelation. There have been studies which produced similar results. It's never to late to quit. I didn't vote because there was no option asking if I thought the results of this study are valid.
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