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A single cigarette reduces a smoker's life expectancy by an average of 20 minutes, a new study from the University of London UCL concludes.
This means that a pack of 20 cigarettes takes almost seven hours off the lives of those who smoke.
As the researchers point out, if someone decides to quit smoking on the first day of the New Year, they will have gained one day of life by January 8 and one week of life by February 5.
If they manage to stay away from cigarettes for a whole year, they will have prevented the loss of about 50 days of life.
The UCL study was commissioned by the UK Department of Health and was based on data from two ongoing surveys of the effects of smoking, the British Doctors' Study which has been running since 1951 and the One Million Women Study which began in 1996.
The previous similar study, in 2000, found that each cigarette reduces life expectancy by 11 minutes.
"People generally know that smoking is harmful, but they tend to underestimate how great the risk is," said lead researcher at UCL Dr. Sarah Jackson.
Smoking is one of the biggest preventable causes of illness and death, killing two-thirds of long-term smokers. In the UK, it causes around 80,000 deaths a year and more specifically in England, it is responsible for one in four cancer deaths.
In Cyprus, smoking remains a significant public health concern, with approximately one-third of the population identified as smokers. The prevalence of smoking among adults aged 15 and over was 35.1% in 2020, showing a gradual decline from 40.9% in 2000. However, gender disparities are notable, with 46.0% of men and 22.1% of women reported as smokers in 2022.
Among youth aged 10 to 14 in Cyprus, smoking prevalence in 2019 was 12.3% for boys and 6.7% for girls. Tobacco use contributes to 12.7% of all deaths in the country, with 19.5% of male deaths and 4.7% of female deaths attributable to smoking. The economic burden is also substantial, costing approximately €471 million annually, including healthcare expenditures and lost productivity.
These alarming statistics highlight the need for comprehensive tobacco control measures in both the UK and Cyprus to mitigate the health and economic impacts of smoking.
With information from CNA and Tobacco Atlas.
