Smoking and Life Expectancy
Smoking for life takes about 10 years off life expectancy. The good news: quitting at 30 wins back almost all of it, quitting at 40 about 9 years, at 50 about 6 and at 60 about 3. These figures come from a 50-year study of British doctors. Try it with your own details in the calculator below.
How many years does smoking take off your life?
The clearest answer comes from Richard Doll and Richard Peto’s study of more than 34,000 male British doctors, followed for 50 years from 1951. Men born in the early 20th century who smoked all their lives died about 10 years sooner, on average, than men who never smoked. At least half of those who kept smoking were eventually killed by it.
In our model, a 35-year-old UK man who smokes for life loses about 10 years compared with a non-smoker, which matches the study closely.
How many years do you gain by quitting?
| Quit at age | Estimate if you keep smoking | Estimate if you quit | Years gained |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | 72.2 | 82.3 | +10.1 |
| 40 | 73.2 | 82.1 | +8.9 |
| 50 | 74.6 | 80.2 | +5.6 |
| 60 | 76.8 | 79.9 | +3.1 |
| 70 | 80.3 | 81.1 | +0.7 |
The earlier the better, but it is never pointless. Even at 60, stopping is worth about 3 years. Risk of a heart attack starts to fall within the first year after quitting, and lung damage slows.
Is smoking a few cigarettes a day safe?
No level of smoking is safe. Even light smoking raises the risk of heart disease and stroke. Cutting down helps less than quitting fully. Our calculator uses years smoked as a simple measure of exposure. If you smoke lightly, choose the shorter band.
What about vaping or other tobacco?
The calculator doesn’t include vaping, cigars, pipes or chewing tobacco, because there is no long-term study that gives a clear years figure for them yet. Cigars, pipes and chewing tobacco carry their own serious risks, such as mouth and throat cancer. If you only vape, answer “never smoked” and read your result with that in mind.
Where to get help quitting
Free stop-smoking services make quitting much more likely than going it alone. The NHS says its local services can make you up to three times more likely to quit. In the US, call 1-800-QUIT-NOW. In the UK, search “NHS Quit Smoking”. Elsewhere, ask your doctor or pharmacist about local support and nicotine replacement.
Frequently asked questions
How many years does smoking take off your life?
About 10 years on average for lifelong smokers, according to the 50-year study of British doctors by Doll and Peto (BMJ, 2004).
Is it worth quitting smoking at 60?
Yes. In the same study, men who quit at 60 gained about 3 years of life expectancy compared with those who kept smoking. Quitting at 50 gained about 6 years, at 40 about 9, and at 30 about 10.
How fast does your body recover after quitting?
Some benefits start within days and weeks, such as better circulation and breathing. Heart attack risk begins to fall in the first year, and risks of stroke and several cancers keep falling over the following years.
Does the death clock include vaping?
No. There is not yet a long-term study that gives a clear years figure for vaping. If you only vape, choose “never smoked” and keep in mind that the long-term effects are still being studied.
Source
Doll R, Peto R, Boreham J, Sutherland I. Mortality in relation to smoking: 50 years’ observations on male British doctors. BMJ, 2004; 328: 1519. doi.org/10.1136/bmj.38142.554479.AE
See how smoking compares with other factors on the death clock, or read about BMI and life expectancy.