Forget the smokes

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Here's another reason to quit smoking - the habit can contribute to dementia or Alzheimer's disease. Smokers are 50% more likely to develop these conditions than former smokers or people who have never smoked, a Dutch researcher has found. Dr. Monique Breteler of Erasmus Medical Centre in Rotterdam studied 7,000 smokers, non-smokers and former smokers over the age of 55 for seven years. Her study, published in the journal Neurology, found that 706 people developed dementia, the majority of them smokers. Smoking increases the risk of diseases of blood vessels in the brain, which is tied to dementia, Breteler said.