Pricing note
Smoking
A large penalty for a habit with large, compounding costs.
Smoking affects life expectancy, cardiovascular and lung health, cancer risk, fertility, sexual function, appearance, smell, finances, and attraction. The quiz rewards a non-smoker and applies one of its larger lifestyle penalties to a smoker.
Score: smoking −$100,000; not smoking +$30,000.
What changes after quitting?
Some effects begin reversing quickly. Heart rate and carbon-monoxide exposure fall early, circulation and lung function can improve over time, and long-term risks of heart disease, stroke, lung disease, and several cancers decline the longer a person remains smoke-free.
Some damage and disease risk can persist, especially after years of heavy smoking, but quitting at any age improves the odds. Taste, smell, breath, skin, immune function, and sexual function can also improve.
The social price
Smoke clings to hair, skin, clothing, cars, and homes. Many nonsmokers will not date a smoker, and employers, landlords, and insurers can attach direct or indirect costs to the habit. That combination makes the market penalty much larger than the price of cigarettes alone.
Quitting campaigns have long emphasized dating appeal as well as health: breath, smell, skin, stamina, fertility, and sexual function can all affect how attractive a smoker appears to a potential partner.