If you’re still on the fence about quitting smoking, consider all the ways that doing so will make you feel better. Your health may improve in ways you never expected it to, simply because you didn’t realize that smoking was impairing your health.
Take a few moments to learn how your overall health will benefit when you skip the smoke breaks.
How Your Health Improves When You Quit Smoking
While quitting can be challenging, it can be helpful to keep in mind exactly what happens when you quit.
The American Lung Association provides a detailed quitting smoking timeline sharing the health benefits:
- Within 20 minutes after you smoke your last cigarette, your heart rate returns to a normal level.
- Within one day, the carbon monoxide levels in your blood return to normal. Your risk of heart attack drops.
- Within three months of being smoke-free, your heart attack risk drops even more and your lung function begins to improve.
- One to nine months after quitting, you’ll probably notice that you’re breathing much better. You’ll experience less coughing and shortness of breath.
- One year later, your risk of developing coronary heart disease is half of a current smoker’s risk.
- After five to 15 years, your risk of stroke is equivalent to someone who never smoked. Your risk of cancer of the mouth, throat or esophagus is half of a current smoker’s risk.
- Ten years after you quit, your risk of other cancers—including cervical cancer, larynx cancer, pancreas cancer and kidney cancer—drops. Your risk of developing lung cancer is half of a current smoker’s risk.
- After 15 years, your risk of heart disease is the same as a nonsmoker’s risk.
Your wallet will also benefit. The National Cancer Institute’s smokefree.gov reports that the average pack of cigarettes costs $6.28. If you smoke one pack of cigarettes per day, you will save $188.40 per month and $2,260.80 per year! (Calculate your own savings based on use here.)
Creating a Quitting Plan That Works for You
Most people who smoke are addicted in two different ways—physically addicted to the nicotine in cigarettes, which stimulates relaxation and happiness in the brain, and psychologically addicted to the habit of smoking. An effective quitting strategy has to consider and overcome both addictions.
If you’ve decided to quit smoking, talk with your primary care provider or pulmonologist, who can offer suggestions and resources for quitting. You can also use resources online like this one, which helps you build a quit plan.
There are many different techniques and products that can help you quit. The trick is to find the ones that work for you—and that may take some experimenting. You may need to use a combination of methods.
Smoking cessation aids can include:
Nicotine replacement therapy
There are multiple nicotine replacement products available over the counter, including skin patches, chewing gum and lozenges. Other products, including a nicotine spray and a nicotine inhaler, are available with a prescription. These products work by gradually decreasing the amount of nicotine your body is exposed to, which can limit withdrawal symptoms.
Varenicline tartrate
This medication was approved by the FDA to help patients quit smoking. It works by blocking the release of dopamine when the body is exposed to nicotine and helps ease cravings for nicotine. While the brand name Chantix has been discontinued, generic versions are available.
Bupropion hydrochloride
This medication is primarily prescribed as an antidepressant but is also approved by the FDA to help quit smoking. It helps to reduce cravings for nicotine while also limiting withdrawal symptoms. Because antidepressants have a risk of serious side effects, it’s important to talk with your medical provider about what to expect.
Transcranial magnetic stimulation
The FDA has given the OK for companies to promote TMS as a smoking cessation technique. TMS uses magnetic fields to stimulate nerve cells in the brain, and it is typically used to lessen depression symptoms.
Smoking cessation classes or support groups
Attending classes to learn about smoking cessation strategies, withdrawal coping methods and avoidance of the temptation to smoke can be helpful when quitting. Support groups may also be beneficial, since they provide a network of others who are taking on the same challenge.
Progressive reduction
This cessation aid is a method that involves gradually reducing the number of cigarettes smoked. Using this technique, smokers use nicotine gum, lozenges or inhalers to help them steadily cut cigarette use until they are no longer smoking at all.
When creating a plan for quitting, it’s important to consider why you smoke. Some people smoke out of habit, some people do it when they’re stressed and some people connect it with eating. Knowing your tendencies can help you choose coping methods that will help you quit.
A medical provider can guide you through options that may be covered by your insurance plan, including Medicaid. Many private insurance plans and Medicaid provide some level of coverage for smoking cessation prescriptions.
Remember that your first attempt to quit smoking may not be your last. You may need to try a different smoking cessation aid or a combination of methods. Stick with it, though! Your health will thank you.
More to Read
- Lung Cancer Symptoms Are Not Always Obvious
- How to Quit Smoking and Reduce Your Risk of Lung Cancer
- 5 Tips for Healthy Lungs
- Is Vaping Bad For Kids? Know The Risks
Medically reviewed by Katrina Roux-Bernstein, RN and Jason Heavner, MD
