According to a recent study, smoking one cigarette can shorten a woman's life by 22 minutes and a man's life by 17 minutes on average. This revised estimate almost doubles the frequently quoted 11-minute number from a 2000 BMJ research. Studies indicate that smokers who continue to smoke lose roughly 10 to 11 years off their life expectancy. If broken down, this equates to 10 years of milestones and priceless moments spent with loved ones. According to the most recent statistics, a standard pack of 20 cigarettes can shorten a smoker's life by about seven hours, emphasising the urgent need to quit smoking.
The cumulative effects of quitting were also investigated in the study. By quitting for just one week, someone who smokes 10 cigarettes a day could avoid losing a whole day of life, and by refraining for eight months, they could regain eight months of life! Such a smoker could have saved fifty days of their life by the end of the year. Smoking's negative effects are not just felt in later life; it accelerates the start of illness and largely damages the healthy middle years. For instance, a 60-year-old smoker would have the same health profile as a 70-year-old non-smoker.
It may be helpful to know that if you decide to quit smoking then it may increase your life expectancy. Smoking a pack of 20 cigarettes a day amounts to losing nearly seven hours of life, each pack at a rate of 20 cigarettes per minute. According to these studies, those who give up smoking extremely early in life, such as their 20s or early 30s, typically have life expectancies comparable to those of nonsmokers. However, as you age, you gradually lose more time, which you can't get back by stopping.
However, you will always have a longer life expectancy regardless of how old you are when you quit. Therefore, you are effectively preventing additional loss of life expectancy, even though you may not be reversing the life that has already been lost. According to a different study that was published in the journal Nature, smoking can affect a person’s immune system on a short- and long-term basis, increasing their risk of contracting infections, cancer, or autoimmune diseases. Additionally, the study discovered that the more an individual smoked, it altered their immunological response further.
Even though smoking rates have declined, the study cautions that cigarettes may be consumed more frequently in order to make up for the reduced cessation. Partial reductions in smoking only provide negligible health advantages.
There is never a good time to start smoking, but if you’re already a smoker, the best time to stop is now!
Image source: Wired, Hindustan Times