We all know that quitting
smoking has tons of health benefits, right? People who quit smoking have more
energy, better circulation, and stronger immune system, among other
considerations. In the long term, smoking cessation lowers the risk of heart
disease, COPD, and cancer, increasing life expectancy. Recently, the New
England Journal of Medicine published an interesting article that used 3 cohort
studies in the U.S. to prospectively assess changes in smoking status. Basically,
the analysis found that smoking cessation is associated with an increase risk
of type 2 diabetes compared with continuing to smoke. Not the first thing you’d
expect, right?
Although quitters do experience a lower risk of developing type
2 diabetes over the long-term, recent quitters within 2-6 years of cessation
are actually at a higher risk. This is primarily due to the weight gain many
experience after cessation, and was found to be directly related. The weight
gain is generally due to increased appetite, decreased physical activity, and
decreased metabolic rate. However, the increased risk of type 2 diabetes after
smoking cessation doesn’t outweigh the overall benefits of giving up smoking on
reducing total and cardiovascular mortality. Better tell Matilda from Wednesday
night crochet class to kick that cigarette habit, Campisi!
Hahaha... Seeing how the increased likelihood of type 2 diabetes from smoking cessation is the consequence of a consequence of smoking, I also definitely agree that quitting smoking is the better choice for every cigarette user. Even one aspect of the direct consequences: cancer, is way more harmful to your body than the potential type 2 diabetes from eating too much after quitting smoking! Even parts of your body that doesn't come directly in contact with carcinogens in the smoke and tar, such as cervix, pancreas, bladder, kidney, stomach, and hematopoietic tissue have increased rate of cancer by 50% to 200% over rates in nonsmokers (Newcomb, 1992). Could you imagine just how much organs in direct contact with smoke: the oral cavity, esophagus, and lung are at increased risk for malignant cancer among smokers? All that I have listed are only about cancer. Other coronary and respiratory diseases, bone and oral degradation, and increased risk of type 2 diabetes (the same one that can be caused by quitting) are the consequences of smoking. Seeing that smoking is the number one preventable cause of death in the United States due to all these factors, the increased likelihood of type 2 diabetes by quitting smoking and eating too much is a worthy risk to take.
ReplyDeleteNewcomb P. A., Carbone P. P (1992). The health consequences of smoking. Cancer. The Medical Clinics of North America. 76(2):305–331. doi: 10.1016/S0025-7125(16)30355-8. [PubMed] [CrossRef]
This article is very interesting. I have known many smokers who have successfully quit smoking and they said it was the best thing they have ever done. They felt as if they had more energy and were more productive at work (probably because they were taking smoke breaks!). However, I met most of these people at the gym. They are consistently working out which helps prevent rapid weight gain and therefore type 2 diabetes. A few of them say they are now in a way addicted to working out, which is a much healthier addiction. Not every one that smokes a cigarette becomes addicted, so these people may have more of an addictive predisposition. Maybe people with this predisposition can substitute smoking with a healthier alternative such as working out to help them quit!
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