Anyone know the life expectancy stats for ex smokers?

[Tiggsy]

Curious......if you smoke from 15 to 35, in otherwords... A very long time but still stop long before old age, what happens to your odds of a smoking related death? Just heard of a chap with lung cancer at 60 having quit at 45 and it prompted mrs t to ask if her quiting at 30 a few years ago may well have been (statisticly) too late. I said nonsense but actually.....20 yrs of puffing can't do you much good?

[grumbledoak]

I believe the risks drop quite quickly. Risk of cardiac arrest is lower 20 mins after your last cigarette, IIRC, and I think you are 'normal risk' within five years or so. You won't ever undo the damage, but everyone comes into contact with carcinogens, whether they smoke or not.

[5unny]

The risk of death from coronary heart disease returns to that of your average non smoker within 5 years.

The risk of death from respiritory disease - 20 years.

The risk of death from lung cancer - 30 years.

Obviously the risk is reducing year by year but the above are the figures at which point you are at the same level of risk as 'never smokers'


Source - "Smoking and Smoking Cessation in Relation to Mortality in Women."
Stacey A. Kenfield; Meir J. Stampfer; Bernard A. Rosner; Graham A. Colditz
JAMA. 2008;299(17):2037-2047.
Vol. 299 No. 17, May 7, 2008


You can read a summary of it here -

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/106562.ph...