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10/01/2008 - Vascular Benefits of Stopping Smoking are Rapid
People who quit smoking will see a rapid decline in the risk of death from coronary heart disease (CHD) and other vascular disorders, a new analysis of the Nurses' Health Study shows.
A recent analysis of the Nurses’ Health Study reported that people who quit smoking will see a “rapid decline in the risk of death from coronary heart disease (CHD) and other vascular diseases.”
In the May issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers found that much of the full benefit of quitting smoking in regard to vascular disease mortality was realized within the first five years of stopping smoking.
While the risk reduction for some diseases takes many years after quitting smoking, doctors are now encouraging people that it’s never too late with some diseases, including CHD.
Doctors at Harvard Medical School in Boston looked at the Nurses’ Health Study earlier this year, and included an additional 16 years of follow-up from the original report, including a total of 12,483 deaths, and updated estimates for total mortality categorized into CHD, cerebrovascular disease, respiratory disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cancers, and other causes. Smoking status of participants was updated every two years.
Researchers found a more rapid decline in risk after smoking cessation in the first five years for vascular diseases compared with other diseases. More than 60 percent of the benefits of quitting smoking with regard to CHS and more than 40 percent of the benefit of quitting smoking with regard to cerebrovascular death was realized within five years of smoking cessation.
In contrast, the excess mortality risk associated with respiratory disease and smoking-related cancers to approach that of a never smoker took much longer: 20 years for COPD and 30 years for lung cancer.
The new research also found that:
-Former smoker’s risks reach never smoker’s risks for all cancers at or
after 20 years of abstinence from smoking.
-Some deaths not previously found to be associated with smoking were
found, including colorectal cancer and cancers of the cervix and stomach.
-The risk of ovarian cancer mortality was not significantly increased with
smoking.
The research hopes to encourage smokers to quit immediately. Although the goal continues to be prevention of starting smoking, breaking the smoking addiction can mean huge benefits to long-term health.
The original Nurses’ Health Study began following 121,700 female nurses in the United States in 1976. Subjects have provided health information every 2 years since initiation of the study, including data regarding cigarette use. Women with a prior history of cancer were excluded from the current study.