Quitting smoking ups diabetes risk

Smoking is well known as a risk factor for Type 2 diabetes, but scientists say that quitting the habit can raise the risk even more in the short term.

A study by US researchers finds that people who stop smoking have a 70 percent increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes in the first six years without cigarettes, as compared to people who never smoked.

The researchers say they suspected the increased diabetes risk comes from extra weight gain common in people who quit.