Benefits to Quitting

It isn’t just about the money you’ll save.

You’ll be reducing the risk of your arteries hardening as a result of the carbon monoxide, even on 5 cigarettes a day. Your skin won’t wrinkle and age as fast. You’ll reduce the risk of gum disease and oral cancer. You’ll slow down the loss of grey matter in your brain. You could enjoy a higher quality of life, reduced risk of panic attacks, depression or stress. You’ll certainly enjoy improved health, and you won’t risk being refused surgery. If you’re male, you’ll have a higher sperm count of higher quality, with less risk of impotence. If you’re a pregnant woman, you’ll reduce the oxidative stress in your baby, the risk of miscarriage and even prevent a slower rate of head growth. You’ll also prevent those around you inhaling the horrible chemicals (including toilet cleaner) of your second-hand smoke.

The Greatest Reward?

But there’s another benefit. Something that most people completely overlook.

You get your own mind back.

For a smoker, this is a difficult thing to comprehend because you are so used to being a smoker. But think about it – for as long as you have been smoking, you have been needing to smoke cigarettes. At regular intervals of everyday, you have to go and inhale 4000 chemicals. Why? Because if you don’t, you face the fears of withdrawal. Beyond the nonsense excuses of smoking, you have been emotionally blackmailed to smoke by the addiction, against suffering withdrawal. If you don’t think this is true, then how could you continue smoking, know the health risks and money that is wasted? This is what addiction is.

So get your mind back from the grasp of addiction and the Tobacco Industry. Allow your mind to return to the natural system of neurochemisty, allowing you to enjoy the real rewards in life without the interference of nicotine.

Immediate Benefits

After…

• 20 minutes: Your blood pressure and pulse return to normal…
• 8 hours:Nicotine and carbon monoxide levels in the blood are halved, oxygen levels in the blood return to normal…
• 24 hours:Carbon monoxide is eliminated from the body and the lungs start to clear out the build up of tar…
• 48 hours:There is no nicotine left in the body. Taste and smell are greatly improved…
• 72 hours:Breathing becomes easier, bronchial tubes begin to relax, energy levels increase…
• 2 – 12 weeks:Circulation improves, walking and running become easier…
• 3 – 9 months:Coughs, wheezing and breathing problems improve as the lungs have room for up to 10% more oxygen 1 year: Risk of heart attack is halved
• 10 years: Risk of lung cancer is halved, risk of heart attack is at the same level as non-smokers…
• Medium to long-term:
  • Risk of developing lung cancer, other cancers, heart attack, stroke and chronic lung disease is reduced – the sooner you stop smoking, the sooner your risk starts going down.
  • Stopping smoking at any age increases your life expectancy, provided that you stop before the onset of serious disease.
  • Even if you have developed a disease, you can benefit from stopping as your body will be under less strain and be able to fight it more easily.
  • A smoker who has suffered from a heart attack can halve the risk of a second heart attack by stopping smoking.
  • Ten years after quitting smoking an ex-smoker’s risk of lung cancer is reduced by 30 – 50% compared with that of a continuing smoker.
  • Smokers who stop before the age of 35 have a life expectancy not significantly different from that of a non-smoker.
  • Smokers who give up smoking between 65 and 74 years of age have a better life expectancy beyond 75 than those who continue to smoke.