Cigarette smokers who quit before age 35 have similar death rates within a given time period to those who have never smoked at all, a large study suggests.
"These results remind us that reducing smoking intensity should be one of the goals for tobacco control programs," Price wrote in his commentary.
In particular, those who quit by age 45 cut their excess risk of death by up to 90 percent, and those who quit before age 35 showed death rates very close to those of never smokers. Having an age 35 deadline could be potentially motivating for young smokers working toward quitting, Price wrote in his commentary.
But of course, all is not lost after age 35 – as the study suggests, quitting at older ages still reduces one's risk of death, just not as dramatically.