Smoking: the younger you quit, the better the heart recovers
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Smokers, especially those who start young, are three times more likely to die prematurely from cardiovascular disease.
Fortunately, the researchers note that the long-term benefits of quitting are significant in this area: cardiovascular risk disappears completely if you quit at 30 and almost completely if you quit at 40.
It is a fact that smoking is one of the leading causes of disease and is the leading cause of preventable death. On average, one in two regular smokers dies from the consequences of smoking. In addition to cancer (one in three cancers is caused by smoking), active smoking can also be the cause of cardiovascular disease: smoking is a major risk factor for myocardial infarction (heart attack). "Stroke, lower extremity arteritis, aneurysms and hypertension are also related, in part, to tobacco smoke," the studies note.
A new study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association recalls that current smokers have almost three times the risk of premature death from cardiovascular disease compared to people who have never smoked, with the risk being higher in those who started smoking in the childhood. "The age at which a person starts smoking is an important factor that is often overlooked, and those who start smoking at an early age are at particularly high risk of dying prematurely from cardiovascular disease," explains Professor Blake Thomson, Prime Minister, study author and fellow at the George Institute for Global Health (England).
A risk reduced by 90% in those who quit smoking before age 40
He adds, "However, quitting smoking can significantly reduce this risk, especially for people who quit at an earlier age. Getting people to quit smoking remains one of the worlds top health priorities. Using data Collected between 1997 and 2014 from the annual US National Health Survey, the researchers examined the medical history and lifestyle habits of smokers and nonsmokers. The study included 390,929 adults, ages 25 to 74 ( mean age 47), occasional smokers were excluded and current smokers were grouped according to the age at which they started smoking.
In this group of participants, 58% were non-smokers, 23% ex-smokers and 19% current smokers, of which 2% had started before age 10 and 19% between 10 and 14 years. During the follow-up period, 4,479 people died before age 75 from heart disease or stroke.
After adjusting for potential confounding variables, such as age, alcohol use, and education, the researchers found that those who quit smoking at age 40 reduced their excess risk of premature death from cardiovascular disease by about 90%. The results also show that quitting smoking at any age has benefits and that the earlier you quit, the better.
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