We all know that smoking kills. But did you know that smokers who are diabetic are twice as likely to prematurely died when compared to smokers without diabetes? Yikes! So diabetics beware, researchers have concluded that smoking can take years of a patient’s life. So maybe it’s time to consider quitting the unhealthy habit.

Women with diabetes who smoked were especially vulnerable; they had an 80 percent higher risk of dying from lung cancer, compared with female smokers who didn’t have the blood sugar illness.

“Smoking is bad for all, but even more in those with diabetes,” said the director of the Clinical Diabetes Center at the Montefiore Medical Center in NYC,  Dr. Joel Zonszein. Zonszein reviewed the new findings of a study conducted by the University of Colorado that involved 53,000 Americans who smoke heavily or have smoked heavily in the past.

Close to 13 percent of smokers with diabetes died over the course of the seven-year study, compared with just under 7 percent of those who didn’t suffer from the blood sugar disease. Women with diabetes who smoked were especially vulnerable; they had an 80 percent higher risk of dying from lung cancer, compared with female smokers who didn’t have the blood sugar illness.

The likelihood of diabetic men who smoked dying of lung cancer was significantly lower. Although they were still associated with a higher likelihood of an early death, they were not at a higher risk of dying from lung cancer,   the findings indicated.

Lead researcher and professor of radiology, Dr. Kavita Garg, said that the findings indicate that “taking control of diabetes is important among smokers, whether they undergo screening for lung cancer or not, because diabetes is an independent risk factor for dying.” Garg’s  team looked at data from people who participated in the National Lung Screening Trial. That U.S. trial compared CT chest scans against chest X-rays, to see how each fared as early screening for lung cancer in current and former heavy smokers.

“When patients are diagnosed with diabetes, quitting smoking does not always seem like a top priority,” said Patricia Folan who directs the Center for Tobacco Control at Northwell Health in Great Neck, N.Y.

Patients are often overwhelmed by the many lifestyle changes required to control their diabetes, she said. Their concern is often focused on diet and exercise, but quitting smoke is as essential a component for a healthy life… especially when you need to manage your blood sugar.