Smoking Results in Lower Quality of Life As Well

By Anna Boyd
14:31, October 14th 2008
21 votes
Vote this story
Smoking Results in Lower Quality of Life As Well

Smoking not only shortens life but it also lowers quality of life, according to a Finnish study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

The study was conducted by Dr. Arto Y. Strandberg of the University of Helsinki and colleagues and involved 1,658 white men born from 1919 to 1934. The participants were healthy at the beginning of the study in 1974. They were followed for a period of 26 years at the end of which they were mailed follow-up questionnaires about their current smoking status, health, and quality of life.

Over the follow-up period, 372 men (22.4 percent) from the study participants had passed away. Non-smokers lived an average of 10 years longer than heavy smokers (“heavy” was defined as more than 20 cigarettes per day). Although 68.9 percent cessation rate during the follow-up period, 44.1 percent of the originally heavy smokers had died, the study found. Mortality increased significantly with the number of cigarettes smoked at baseline.

Another interesting finding of the study was that smoking not only affected life expectancy but also affected the quality of life, as “those who survived to the mean age of 73 years had a significantly lower physical health-related quality of life than never-smokers.”

Smoking remains the biggest avoidable cause of death and disability in the United States, David M. Burns, M.D. professor emeritus of family and preventive medicine at the University of California San Diego wrote in an accompanying editorial. According to current estimates, smoking kills more than 400,000 people each year.

Also, secondhand smoking seems to be higher than previously believed, killing almost 40,000 people annually because of cancers, respiratory infections and asthma, conditions diagnosed in the case of smokers as well. Smoking also favors conditions such as heart disease and child birth defects in case of women who smoke during pregnancy.



© 2007 - 2008 - eFluxMedia
dotclear

Other News in

Study Shows Autistic Children Face Difficulty Processing Sounds

Study Shows Autistic Children Face Difficulty Processing Sounds

According to a new study, children with autism spectrum disorder process sounds a fraction of a second slower than other children. This abnormality gives insight into issues of language and...

Epilepsy Drug in Pregnancy Increases Autism Risk

Epilepsy Drug in Pregnancy Increases Autism Risk

Pregnant women taking valproate, a drug used to treat epilepsy, may significantly increase their baby’s risk of developing autism, according to a study published in the Dec. 2 issue of the journal...

Media Exposure Is Bad For Kids’ Health, Report Says

Media Exposure Is Bad For Kids’ Health, Report Says

Parents, have you ever wondered how exposure to media sources impacts the physical health of your kids? A study by the US National Institutes of Health, Yale University and the California...

Doctors Urge HIV Tests for All Patients Over 13

Doctors Urge HIV Tests for All Patients Over 13

On the very same day the world was celebrating the World AIDS Day, the American College of Physicians released a new practice guideline in the Annals of Internal Medicine website. The...

Report: Half Of Young Adults Have A Mental Health Disorder

Report: Half Of Young Adults Have A Mental Health Disorder

Nearly half of US youths suffer from a psychiatric disorder, from alcohol dependency to depression, but few seek treatment, according to a study published in this week’s Archives of General...

dotclear
Latest videos in Health
Drugmakers' recession...
Zimbabwe cholera death toll...
Doctor designs artificial...
Face to face best for baby...
Landmark windpipe transplant

dotclear
Health You are here: Health
» Science   » Health   
E-mail To A Friend Print RSS Text size: Decrease font size Increase font size
dotclear
dotclear
dotclear
Most Popular in Health
FDA Defends the Low Levels of Melamine In Baby FormulasFDA Defends the Low Levels of Melamine In Baby Formulas

» read full story
dotclear

Interested In This Topic?

News Alert will keep you informed. Find out more.
dotclear
Photos Gallery
dotclear
Today's Latest News
Microsoft is Boasting the Black Friday SalesMicrosoft is Boasting the Black Friday Sales

» read full story
dotclear