Age related cognitive decline affects people’s quality of life and their ability to live independently.¹ A recent review stated, “[we] are aware of no studies on the relationship between smoking and cognitive decline associated with normal aging or studies of the effect of smoking on cognition in normally aging individuals.”¹ Some previous studies examined smoking in relation to pathological cognitive aging, but lacked cognitive data before the initiation of smoking, and used crude clinical cognitive assessments.^2–4 Among middle aged subjects, current smoking was associated with poorer cognitive performance on tasks of psychomotor speed and cognitive flexibility.⁵ Smoking has been identified as a possible risk factor for accelerated cerebral degenerative changes, cognitive decline, and dementia.⁶ Here we show that smoking contributes to normal cognitive change from age 11 to age 80.