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10 Expert-Backed Tips To Quit Smoking Cigarettes
Short Term BenefitsThere are many benefits to quitting smoking, says Robert Goldberg, M.D., a pulmonologist with Providence Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo, California. "Within the first 20 minutes of smoking your last cigarette, your heart rate and blood pressure will drop. As time passes, the carbon monoxide level in your blood becomes normal and your circulation and lung function improves," he says.
Other immediate benefits include an improved sense of smell, a better ability to taste food, a decrease in yellowing of the fingernails, increased exercise capacity and improvement in the smell of your breath, hair and clothes. Over time, you'll cough less, but don't be surprised if you cough more in the short term, says Norman Edelman, M.D., a pulmonologist and professor of Internal Medicine at Stony Brook University in New York.
"The smoker's cough gets worse in the first few weeks after quitting because the airways of the lungs are repairing themselves by bringing up mucus from deep in the lungs," says Dr. Edelman.
Long Term BenefitsIn the long-term, quitting smoking reduces your risk of stroke, heart attack and certain types of cancers including lung, mouth, throat, voice box (larynx), bladder, esophagus and kidney, says Dr. Goldberg.
Half of all regular smokers will die of a smoking-related disease such as lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and cardiovascular disease (heart attacks and strokes), says Dr. Edelman. The good news? It's never too late to stop.
"Even if you're 70 years old and you smoked for 30-40 years, there is a health benefit to quitting," says Dr. Edelman.
In fact, quitting smoking can add as much as 10 years to your life, according to the American Cancer Society. And if you stop before the age of 40, you significantly reduce your risk of dying from a smoking-related disease, says Dr. Goldberg.
Why Is Smoking So Addictive?Nicotine, a plant alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, occurs naturally in tobacco and is a leading cause of addiction. Studies show that people who have their first cigarette as a teen are likely to become hooked due to the addictive properties of nicotine, says Dr. Goldberg. Nicotine is thought to be as addictive as heroin or cocaine, according to the American Cancer Society.
"As a smoker inhales nicotine, they start to become calm and distracted from any unpleasant feelings due to a change in their brain chemistry and central nervous system," says Dr. Goldberg. The hit of dopamine a smoker receives from nicotine creates feelings of pleasure, satisfaction and motivation.
In addition to becoming chemically addicted to nicotine, smoking becomes a habit that you have to break, says Dr. Edelman. For example, you may be used to getting up in the morning and having a cigarette with your coffee, or on your drive to work. Psychologically, that may be hard to give up.
"Smoking cessation is like learning to ride a bike," says Dr. Edelman. "You had several falls before you got the knack of it. Don't don't get discouraged if you fail. Try again. It's always worth the effort."
How Long Does It Take to Quit Smoking Cigarettes?It will take the brain chemistry of light and heavy smokers up to three months to return to normal, says Dr. Goldberg. "The good news is that cravings won't be as strong or frequent after you've been smoke-free for a week, and cravings are usually completely gone in one to three months," he says.
Managing nicotine withdrawal can be a challenge for many smokers; the first week tends to be the hardest. You've finally gotten nicotine out of your system, but you might experience side effects such as headaches, cravings, increased appetite and insomnia, along with mental health challenges including anxiety, depression, irritability and mental fog, adds Dr. Goldberg.
How Does Smoking Affect Crohn's Disease?
Smoking may increase your risk of developing Crohn's disease but can also make the disease worse. Quitting smoking can improve your outlook and reduce your risk of complications with Crohn's.
Crohn's disease is a common inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that primarily affects your small intestine and a portion of the upper large intestine. Like other types of IBD, such as ulcerative colitis (UC), Crohn's disease causes cycles of flare-ups (worsening symptoms) and remission (absence of symptoms).
For unknown reasons, Crohn's disease cases are increasing in number in the United States and globally. There is no single known cause of IBD, including Crohn's, though there are several suspected risk factors.
Here's what the research suggests about smoking and its risks with Crohn's disease.
Smoking not only increases your risk of developing Crohn's disease but may also cause you to experience more flare-ups. This means you may experience more frequent or worsening:
People with Crohn's disease who smoke also have:
Quitting smoking can improve your overall health, and it may also help with Crohn's disease. By quitting smoking, you may experience:
If your Crohn's disease affects your large intestine, you may be at an increased risk of developing colon cancer. Treatment can help reduce this risk.
Also, smoking cigarettes may increase your risk of colorectal cancer development and related death. Research also links continuing to smoke after some colorectal cancer treatments to cancer recurrence.
If you have Crohn's disease or risk factors for developing IBD, consider the following common questions about the relationship between smoking and digestive conditions.
Can smoking cause inflammatory bowel disease?It's unclear whether there's a direct cause-and-effect relationship between smoking and IBD. However, research does suggest that smoking may increase your risk of developing IBD, particularly Crohn's disease and microscopic colitis.
Can smoking protect against ulcerative colitis?Some research suggests that the rate of UC is higher in nonsmokers than in smokers. One such study in 2021 found that people with UC who smoked had lower levels of inflammation than people with Crohn's disease who smoked.
However, the reasons for this are unclear. Also, another 2022 study found that while smokers with UC had fewer rates of hospitalization, they were at a higher risk of cancer and death.
Given the range of other adverse health effects associated with smoking, a doctor will recommend you try to quit.
How does smoking affect your intestines?Though the exact causes aren't clear, experts think smoking might alter bacteria in your intestines and increase the likelihood of leaky gut. This could, in turn, allow toxins to enter your bloodstream and cause an immune system reaction.
Smoking is linked to an increased risk of numerous health problems, and Crohn's disease is among them. Smoking when you have Crohn's disease may also worsen your symptoms, reduce periods of remission, and cause other complications.
If you have Crohn's disease and currently smoke, consider working with a doctor on a plan to help you quit. By not smoking, you can potentially improve your outlook with Crohn's disease and your overall health.
The Surprising Health Advantages Of Quitting Smoking At Any Age
Nearly everyone knows that smoking is bad for their health. Inhaling tobacco by smoking cigarette smoke or vaping increases the risk of:
• Many types of cancer• Heart disease and stroke• Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)• Diabetes
But smoking is very, very addictive. That not only makes it hard to quit; it can literally make it harder to decide to quit — and easier to start again.
Many smokers may think, "I've been smoking for so long…the damage is done! What's the point of quitting now?"
But quitting at any time has profound benefits for our health and quality of life. Those benefits begin much faster than people may realize and keep expanding the longer we don't smoke.
This Timeline Could Be a LifelineWhen we stop smoking, the health advantages begin almost immediately. And the longer we don't smoke, the better they get.
Here's a timeline of what happens to your body when you quit smoking:
• Within 20 minutes: Heart rate and blood pressure drop to a healthier level.
• Within 24 hours: Blood nicotine level drops to zero.
• Within a few days: The carbon monoxide level in the blood is the same as in a non-smoker.
• Within 2-3 months: Blood circulation and lung function improve.
• Within 1 year: Lung capacity and stamina increase significantly.
• Within 1-2 years: Heart attack risk gets much lower.
• Within 3-6 years: Coronary artery disease risk is cut in half.
• Within 5-10 years: Added risk of getting mouth, throat, or laryngeal cancer drops 50 percent, and stroke risk decreases substantially.
• After 10 years: Added risk of lung cancer drops 50 percent; our risk of bladder, esophageal, and kidney cancers also goes down sharply.
• Added 15 years: Coronary heart disease risk becomes almost as low as if we had never smoked at all.
• After 20 years: Risk of mouth, throat, laryngeal, and pancreatic cancer decreases to almost the same level as someone who has never smoked, and added risk of cervical cancer drops in half.
Quitting smoking at any time can increase our life span by as much as ten years. And quitting before the age of 40 reduces our risk of death from smoking-related disease by about 90 percent. But even if we only quit temporarily, it's still better than not quitting at all!
Other Benefits of QuittingThe perks of quitting smoking go beyond improving our health. And sometimes focusing on those other benefits can help motivate us to take that big step.
Breathing easierSmoking injures our lungs over time, so it's harder for us to get the oxygen we need. Climbing stairs, exercising, doing housework, and gardening get us out of breath much more easily, and we may feel tired all the time.
We may also start coughing, which makes it harder to catch our breath. Over time we may develop COPD. And if we have asthma, smoking also makes that worse.
Quitting gives our lungs a chance to heal. And they do heal, though it doesn't happen overnight.
Coming (back) to our sensesSmoking damages nerves in our mouths and noses, making our senses of taste and smell much less sensitive. This happens so gradually most people don't even notice it.
But within just 48 hours of quitting, our nerve endings start to regrow. Within two weeks, these senses usually start to return in a noticeable way. So we can appreciate nice fragrances and delicious flavors much more like we used to.
Smelling and looking betterSmoking not only impairs our sense of smell; we also get used to the smell of smoke over time. Eventually we can't tell that our breath, our hair, our clothes, our cars, and our homes smell like an ashtray. Plus, smoking turns our teeth and nails yellow and prematurely ages our skin.
Saving moneyA typical smoker spends about $130 per month on cigarettes; that's more than $1,500 a year.
Over a lifetime, the average smoker in Pennsylvania spends more than $167,000 on cigarettes — and more than $204,000 in associated medical costs. When you factor in all the other things the smoker could have done with their money, lost income, and other costs, the total price tag is over 3 million dollars. I can think of much better ways to spend that kind of money!
Saving the people we care aboutCigarette smoke contains thousands of chemicals, at least 70 of which cause cancer. You probably wouldn't voluntarily eat cyanide, arsenic, formaldehyde, ammonia, or lead. But that's what we inhale when we smoke. And that's what we're exposing the people around us to.
Second-hand smoke:
• Causes measurable inflammatory and respiratory effects within minutes that can last for hours• Increases children's risk of sudden infant death syndrome, respiratory and ear infections, and asthma attacks• Can create reproductive health problems, including low-birth-weight infants• Increases adults' risk of coronary artery disease, lung cancer, strokes, and premature death• Has killed over two million people in the U.S. Since 1964
Then there's third-hand smoke, which accumulates on surfaces and soaks into clothing, furniture, carpets, and other fabrics. It's very hard to remove and poses a major health risk to nonsmokers — especially children.
Quitting Is PossibleThis article has tips on how to quit, including smoking cessation resources available to Independence Blue Cross members.
These additional resources may also help:
• CDC: Free Help to Quit Smoking• American Lung Association: Freedom from Smoking®• Mayo Clinic: 10 Ways to Resist Tobacco Cravings• smokefree.Gov
Quitting smoking is hard. Many people quit, then start again, then quit again, then start again. But even quitting temporarily is better than not quitting at all — and has plentiful health and quality-of-life benefits for smokers and non-smokers alike.
This content was originally published on IBX Insights.
About Dr. Nuria Lopez-PajaresDr. Nuria Lopez-Pajares joined Independence Blue Cross in 2018 after practicing primary care and population health for 18 years. With a background in public health and preventive medicine, she is now a medical director involved in utilization management, case management, and quality improvement. What she loves about this job is the opportunity to put prevention into practice and educate.
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