Hawai'i's new anti-smoking law is a good example of how sound public policy can put us on the road to better public health.

Reducing the number of smokers, as well as healthcare costs due to smoking-related diseases, are worthy goals. However, we can't always rely on laws to prompt us to make choices that lead to a healthy, longer, disease-free life.

A new study suggests even if you've put off taking action as late as mid-life, it's still not too late to make a difference.

The study was done in Hawai'i by Drs. David Curb and R. Bradley J. Willcox, known for "The Okinawan Diet Plan." Published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, it showed that individuals who make healthy choices can greatly reduce their risk of heart disease, stroke, cancer, pulmonary disease, Parkinson's disease and diabetes.

In the largest and longest-running study of its kind, 5,820 Japanese-American men in Hawai'i, first identified when the average age was 54, were observed for 40 years. Of the original participants, 2,451, or 42 percent, survived to 85 years. More incredibly, 655, or 11 percent, of those survivors did so without any of the major chronic diseases of old age.

The subjects all avoided smoking, didn't drink to excess and watched their weight.

The new law is a mandate that everyone in the state must follow. But eating right, exercising and avoiding behavior that puts our health at risk is a matter of personal responsibility and choice.

It's a choice worth making.