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Excerpts from: Smokers get ill sooner, study says
Only half of them will reach age 65 free of diseases such as bronchitis, StatsCan warns
 

By BRIAN LAGHI     Smokers get ill sooner, study says   [06/23/01]
 

                     OTTAWA -- Canadians who smoke not only die sooner, but a new report
                     says half of them won't reach their golden years without suffering a chronic
                     illness.

                     The Statistics Canada analysis, released yesterday, found what almost every
                     other investigation of smoking has found: that those who indulge in the habit die
                     before those who don't.

                     But the data, culled from the agency's continuing National Population Health
                     Survey begun seven years ago, also indicated that smokers' quality of life in
                     middle- and old-age is sharply reduced because they are more likely to have
                     debilitating illnesses than those who don't smoke.

                     Indeed, only half of smokers will reach age 65 without getting a chronic
                     condition such as bronchitis, asthma or high-blood pressure, while two-thirds
                     of those who don't smoke will reach retirement age without such an illness.

                     "Smokers spend a larger proportion of their lives coping with functional
                     disabilities than do non-smokers, and they are far more likely to die
                     prematurely," the study reported.

                     "Smoking not only reduced the number of years that a person may hope to
                     live, it also has a negative impact on their quality of life."

                     The study found that a male smoker aged 45 could expect to live another 18
                     years before suffering from some form of related illness. However, a male
                     abstainer could expect seven years disease-free on top of that.

                     Female non-smokers could enjoy an extra eight years without illness than
                     those who smoke.

                     Neil Collishaw, director of research for Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada,
                     said the study is the first major one of its kind in Canada.

                     He said it will help to explode the myth that some economic studies have put
                     forward that smoking actually saves the medicare system money because
                     smokers tend to die younger.

                     Mr. Collishaw said the StatsCan study may persuade people to quit.
 

                     The StatsCan study notes that, in a country such as Canada where citizens can
                     expect to live a long time, life expectancy is not the only reflection of good
                     health.

                     "For example, the increased effectiveness of treatments for a disease could
                     enable a larger number of individuals to survive but in a state of disability," the
                     report said. "Thus, the use of other aggregated indicators is necessary to better
                     define population's health and disability-free life expectancy is one of them."

                     The investigation also noted that other studies have found that non-smokers
                     often exercise more, drink less and have better eating habits. Conversely,
                     smoking and excessive alcohol consumption are often linked, making it more
                     likely that smokers will suffer medical conditions before those who don't.

                     "For many individuals, growing old is not a major concern as long as one
                     remains in good health," the study concludes.

                     ". . . Future gains in life expectancy may be less attractive if these additional
                     years are spent in poor health."

                     The study also measured mortality rates and reaffirmed the higher death rates
                     among those who smoke.

                     Smoking takes its toll
                     45-year-old adults will drastically reduce their life expectancy by smoking.

                                   AGE 45
 

                                        Years disablity-free     Life expectancy
 

                     Male non-smoker            69.8                 80.5
 

                     Male smoker                62.8                 73.1
 

                     Female non-smoker          70                   85.8
 

                     Female smoker              62.1                 75.5

                     Source: Statistics Canada