Quitting smoking and losing weight rank top among Americans' New Year resolutions, a survey reveals. According to the annual survey by the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion of 1,029 adults, 17 percent of the 44 percent of respondents who said they made a resolution wished to quit smoking, 16 percent to go on a diet, and 13 percent to curb their spending.

According to calculations by MSN Money, if a 40-year-old American who smokes a pack of 20 cigarettes costing around US$6 a day quits smoking and puts the savings into a retirement fund with an annual interest rate of 9 percent, the total amount of money saved would be $250,000 in 30 years.

Other resolutions included becoming a better person (10 percent) and getting a better job (6 percent).