What does dying from all causes mean?

Kintarian@lemmy.world to No Stupid Questions@lemmy.world – 111 points –

In some studies, at the end of them, I see:

"quitting smoking reduces your chance of dying from all causes."

So if I quit smoking I'm less likely to get hit by a bus?

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As a former ICU nurse I can tell you that someone who has been taking good care of their body, is fit and healthy, has a better chance of survival and less complications while recovering as someone who didn't. No matter the injury.

If you get hit by a bus and your lung is compromised it has a harder time compensating for the injury if it was already damaged.

So yes. You might have a better chance to survive a car crash if you haven't been smoking.

That's interesting. I hadn't thought of that. Thanks.

You might have a better chance to survive a car crash if you haven’t been smoking.

That's probably why I've survived so many car crashes.

It sounds a bit like your poor driving is the cause for you to survive so many car crashes.

But not poor enough to cause any fatal crashes. There's a driving skill sweet spot where you have maximum crash survival.

Yeah. Came here to write exactly this.

What OP misunderstood is the old tale of mortality vs. lethality.

In a simplified explanation: Mortality defines the percentage of deaths in a population by a cause.

Lethality is the percentage of deaths of people suffering from a cause.

In our case:

  • Smokers might only get hit by a bus slightly less often or slightly more often(1) (Mortality)

  • But they have a far greater chance of dying from it when they get hit. The same can be said for being shot,etc. Being a smoker always reduces your statistical chances.

(1:Actually quite fascinating - there is conflicting evidence on that one, as smoking is often statistically associated with substance abuse and bad health - which increases the likelihood of major trauma events, but on the other hand smokers die earlier,leaving more old people to walk in front of vehicles due to reduced cognitive abilities)

We must do something about all these old people getting run over by buses.

Free cigarettes! Should help reduce the number of old people getting run over by buses

Indeed is major trauma (which getting run over by a bus is a euphemism for) a much overlooked concern for older people (especially "the younger" old people, which are between 60-75).