BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- In a study of more than 10,000 middle-aged people, researchers from Johns Hopkins University found both current smokers and recent quitters had a greater risk for type 2 diabetes.

Compared to those who never smoked, current smokers were 31 percent more likely to develop diabetes but for those who had recently quit, the risk was even higher -- 73 percent.

The authors speculated that quitting smoking causes weight gain and inflammation in the body that temporarily increases the odds of getting diabetes.

The good news is that the diabetes risk did decrease again -- smokers who had quit 12 years ago had no excess risk.

Experts agreed that the health threat from smoking is so large that it's always a good idea to quit.

People concerned about short-term increases in diabetes risk, they said, can watch their diet and increase their exercise as well as have their blood sugar checked more often to catch any problems early.