I can’t imagine why anyone would need yet another reason to give up smoking, but here it is. Californian scientists writing in the Archives of Internal Medicine claim middle-aged people who smoke 40 cigarettes a day have a 157% higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease than non-smokers, and a 172% higher risk of developing vascular dementia, which is the most common form of dementia after Alzheimer’s.
Whoah there. Let’s go back a bit. FORTY cigarettes a day. That’s two packs. Well pardon me, but if you’re still smoking two packs of fags a day in middle age, you’ll have a heap of other health worries apart from a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s, let alone the fact that you’ll be broke, since the price of cigarettes today is, oh, I’ve lost count of how expensive they are.
Normally I’m very sceptical when it comes to mentions of increased risk factors, but in this case… well, come on. Smoking isn’t healthy. Everyone knows it. The fact that it’s now linked to a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia only means people who are still smoking need more help than ever to give up.
There again, I’m not sure a lot of people who are still smoking want to. Despite all the health warnings.
Fair enough. I really believe that everyone should have the right to do whatever they want to with their own bodies, take whatever risks they want to and live however they see fit. As long as it doesn’t affect anyone else. Especially me.