If you don't quit smoking in time, your thinking and understanding will rapidly decline in old age.

A Lancet report found that those who quit smoking in midlife have a lower risk of severe cognitive decline in old age. Let's learn more about this.

 

With advancing age, a person's physical strength and memory power diminish. Forgetting things, physical weakness, and blurred vision are common. This is not a cause for concern, as cognitive decline is common in older people. Cognitive decline is a condition in which a person's mental abilities diminish day by day, and they begin to forget things. This is normal as they age.

 

However, if this problem becomes severe, it can indicate serious cognitive decline, which is extremely dangerous. Smoking has been cited as the biggest cause. A Lancet report shows that severe cognitive decline slows down in old age among those who quit smoking in midlife. 

Smoking increases cognitive decline. 

Smoking has a significant impact on a person's mental health. Cognitive abilities gradually decline, and memory, attention, and executive function are slowed. This significantly increases the risk of dementia, Alzheimer's, and stroke. According to doctors, this occurs because smoking damages the blood vessels in the brain and reduces blood supply to the brain, causing brain function to slow down or stop functioning. It can also lead to several neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. This is because smoking causes amyloid plaques to form in the brain, increasing the risk. Furthermore, nicotine blocks blood supply to the brain, increasing the risk of stroke.

What are the benefits of quitting smoking? 

Scientists have found in their study that people who quit smoking in midlife experience a 20% slower cognitive decline in old age, and a 50% slower decline in verbal fluency, which improves their thinking and communication skills. Therefore, those addicted to smoking should try to quit in middle age to avoid worsening these problems in old age.