Quitting Smoking = Increased risk for Diabetes???

When the media ever so gently threw out this tag line for an upcoming story, I was irate….  Being the daughter of a Type 2 Diabetic and a now FORMER smoker (Yeah!! Go Mom), I was upset that this was the tagline they needed to grab the attention of viewers.  I can hear it now, “see I can’t quit, I’ll increase my risk…” So before ranting too much, I looked up the study,  thankfully it does acknowledge that the increased risk is because of the extra weight that is typically put on after quitting smoking.

So let it be clear that quitting smoking is NOT the culprit, the extra pounds are the problem.  If you plan to quit smoking and are at risk for Type 2 Diabetes, talk to your doctor, or other health expert on how you can also manage your weight while you quit.

“Tobacco is the leading preventable cause of death in the world, killing more than 5 million people a year. A report by the World Lung Foundation last August said smoking could kill a billion people this century if trends hold.”

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