Quitting by 30 'cuts female smokers' risk of early death'

Women who give up smoking by the age of 30 will almost completely reduce the risks of dying young from tobacco-related diseases, according to research published in the Lancet.

The study of 1.2 million women suggests that those who stopped smoking by 40 died a year younger than non-smokers and those who stopped by 30 lost, on average, a month of life.

Health experts have warned that this was not a licence for the young to smoke.

Branwen Jeffreys reports.