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True Cost Of Every Cigarette Smoked

If you’re considering a New Year’s resolution to quit smoking, new research might provide the extra motivation you need. A recent study reveals that each cigarette smoked could shorten a person’s life by up to 22 minutes, with those smoking a pack a day losing nearly seven hours of life daily.

Published on December 29, 2024, in the journal Addiction, the study used mortality data from British smokers to demonstrate the long-term impact of smoking. According to Dr. Sarah Jackson, the lead researcher at University College London, the time lost due to smoking is time that could have been spent with loved ones in good health, underscoring the impact smoking has on the healthier years of life, not just the later, more fragile years.

The study, funded by the UK Department for Health and Social Care, analyzed data from two major studies: the British Doctors Study for men and the Million Women Study for women. The results revealed that lifelong smokers lost, on average, 10 years of life compared to nonsmokers. Dr. Jackson emphasized that while quitting smoking at a young age can help restore life expectancy to levels similar to never-smokers, those who quit later in life will still see improvements but won’t fully regain the years lost.

For those considering quitting, the research highlights how even small steps can have a significant effect. For instance, a person who smokes 10 cigarettes daily could prevent the loss of one day of life within a week of quitting, and by the end of the year, they could save nearly 50 days of life expectancy. Dr. Jackson reinforced that quitting smoking is one of the best things people can do for their health, with long-lasting benefits.

Despite a decline in smoking rates since the 1960s, smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death in the United States, killing over 480,000 people annually, according to the CDC. Additionally, smoking weakens the immune system, increasing the risk of infections, cancers, and autoimmune diseases, as highlighted in a 2024 study in Nature. However, researchers like Dr. Darragh Duffy are optimistic, noting that the immune system begins to recover soon after quitting. The best time to stop smoking is now.