An article by Inoue-Choi and colleagues in JAMA Network Open on September 22, 2022 addressed the health status of former smokers. They point out that “The benefits of smoking cessation are well known, but former smokers have a higher health risk than never smokers.”
What can former smokers do to further reduce their risk of premature death? Does following healthy lifestyle recommendations help former smokers?
To answer these questions the researchers compared death rates of former smokers who followed healthy lifestyle recommendations compared to former smokers who don’t. The healthy lifestyle recommendations included maintaining a healthy weight, eating healthy foods, engaging in regular physical activity, and drinking alcohol only in moderation.
Those former smokers who followed these recommendations had a 27% lower risk of death from any cause than those who didn’t.
If you or a loved one is a former smoker, following a healthy lifestyle can lower the risk of premature death. These recommendations can be found at www.cdc.gov.
Peter M. Hartmann, MD
Family Medicine & Psychiatry
