Quitting smoking can give heart disease patients nearly five additional years of life without heart problems, according to a new study.
“Kicking the habit appears to be as effective as taking three medications for preventing heart attacks and strokes in those with a prior heart attack or procedure to open blocked arteries,” said study author Dr. Tinka van Trier, of Amsterdam University Medical Centre in the Netherlands.
The new study included nearly 1,000 patients 45 and older who were still smoking at least six months after having a heart attack and/or undergoing stent implantation or bypass surgery. They were generally treated with standard heart medications such as antiplatelets, statins and blood pressure-lowering drugs.
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