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Zelfs senioren die stoppen met roken kunnen hun leven verlengen.*
Mensen die op 35 jarige leeftijd stoppen met roken verlengen hiermede hun levenskansen met gemiddeld 8 jaar, in vergelijking met rokers. Maar zelfs als je 65 jarige leeftijd stopt is de verlenging 2 tot 3jaar. Dit blijkt uit een onderzoek onder 877.000 personen. Duidelijk is wel dat rokers zo jong mogelijk moeten stoppen.
In addition to exercising and eating a balanced diet, quitting smoking--even in old age--may also be a key to longevity, new study findings show. "Stopping smoking as early as possible will maximize life expectancy, but even smokers who quit at age 65 can (gain) significant life extensions compared to smokers who continue," lead study author Dr. Donald H. Taylor, Jr. of Duke University in North Carolina told Reuters Health. He and his colleagues analyzed data from more than 877,000 individuals involved in a cancer prevention study, to determine the relationship between smoking and death. Overall, men who reported quitting smoking at 35 years of age were estimated to live about 8.5 years longer than men who said they were current smokers, the investigators report in the June issue of the American Journal of Public Health. Women who said they quit at age 35 were expected to live 7.7 years longer than continuing smokers. Even 65-year-old men who quit smoking gained two additional years of life, the report indicates. And 65-year-old women gained almost four years. Smoking increases the risk of heart disease, cancer and stroke--the three main causes of death in the US, according to Taylor. Thus, stopping smoking decreases one's risk of these diseases and "translates into meaningful extensions of life," he said. Still, Taylor notes that "this study does not show that you can smoke until age 65 and undo all the harm due to smoking." For example, a man who quits smoking at 35 is expected to live at least until he reaches age 76. If the same man quits at age 65, however, his life expectancy is only about 71 years, the report indicates. Similarly, a 35-year-old woman who quits smoking has a life expectancy of nearly 80 years, but if she quits at 65, her life expectancy drops to 76.5 years. The study did not include individuals who were suffering from any serious illnesses, "so if you quit after you are diagnosed with a disease like lung cancer, you cannot expect this magnitude of life extension after stopping smoking," Taylor said. "Smokers should quit as early in life as possible, but it is not too late to quit, even at age 65," the researcher added. On the other hand, "if you don't smoke, don't start." SOURCE: American Journal of Public Health 2002;92:990-996. (mei 2002)