Smoking is dumb and dumbing

Men who smoke suffer a more rapid decline in brain function as they age than their non-smoking counterparts, with their cognitive decline as rapid as someone 10 years older but who shuns tobacco, scientists said on Monday.

In a large, long-term study, British researchers found that while there seems to be no link between cognitive decline and smoking in women, in men, the habit is linked to swifter decline, with early dementia-like cognitive difficulties showing up as early as the age of 45.

The research adds to an already large body of evidence about the long-term dangers of smoking - a habit the World Health Organization refers to as "one of the biggest public health threats the world has ever faced".