Generally, the United Kingdom media reported the story accurately, with most headlines focusing on the 22% risk increase attributed to secondhand smoke exposure – otherwise known as passive smoking.
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“Patients who smoke should also be informed that stopping smoking and maintaining long-term abstinence will not only lessen their cardiovascular and cancer risks, but over time might also lessen their diabetes risk”. The researchers stress that smoking is a risk factor that could account for nearly 27.8 million diabetes cases worldwide. “The smoke-free policies can provide protections for non-smokers and may lead to increased successful cessation in smokers”, said An Pan, the first author of the study and professor of epidemiology at School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, China.
A study into smoking and the association with type 2 diabetes has concluded that smokers have 1.4 times greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes compared with those who do not smoke.
Among current smokers, the amount smoked made a difference.
Interestingly, there was a 54% increased risk of diabetes in new quitters – those who quit less than 5 years ago – compared with those who had never smoked. However, the numbers fall back down in the next 5 years after that to 18%, and then to 10% within the next 10 years. This initial Surgeon General’s Report did not discuss the link of second hand smoke to diabetes, and it did not discuss the positive impact of smoking cessation on reducing the risk of diabetes development.
1 to 9 months after quitting, lung function improves with reduced mucus and reduced risk of infection.
5 years after quitting, stroke risk and cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus, and bladder are cut by 1/2.
While Sattar cautions that the link is not “definitive”, the researchers believe there is a strong case for associating type 2 diabetes with smoking and call for further research in the field. So, if you are diabetic and a smoker you should quit the habit as soon as possible, Dr. Elliot recommends.
Past studies reveal how type 2 diabetes increases the chance of a heart attack, stroke and blindness.
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The next step in research is to determine if nicotine is specifically a major cause of smoking leading to diabetes. He added that public health organizations should add diabetes to the list of smoke-related problems.
