Once you quit smoking, your body begins to recuperate immediately. You don’t have to wait years to reap the benefits of not smoking. The American Cancer Society has outlined the repairs that your body begins to make within minutes of putting out your last cigarette.

20 Minutes:

• Pulse rate drops to normal
• Blood pressure drops to normal
• Heart rate drops to normal
• Circulation improves
• Body temperature in hands and feet increase to normal

 8 Hours:

• Carbon monoxide blood level drops to normal
• Oxygen level in blood increases to normal
• Cigarette odor on breath disappears
• Individual begins to feel generally better

 24 Hours

• Chance of heart attack begins to decrease

 48 Hours

• Nerve endings in nose and mouth begin to regrow
• Ability to smell and taste are increased
• Mucous begins to clear from the lungs

 2 Weeks – 3 Months:

• Circulation improves
• Walking becomes easier
• Lung function increases up to 30%

 1 Month – 9 Months

• Decrease in: coughing, sinus congestion, fatigue & shortness of breath
• Lung cilia have re-grown, increasing the lungs’ ability to clean themselves
• Overall increase in energy level

 1 Year:

• Excess risk of coronary heart disease is half that of a smoker

 5 Years:

• Lung cancer death rate decreases by half

 10 Years:

• Lung cancer death rate is now equivalent to that of a non-smoker
• Pre-cancerous cells are replaced by healthy cells
• Risk of other cancers (mouth, throat, bladder, etc.) decreases

 15 Years:

• You are now no more at risk of heart disease than if you had never smoked.

Taking the Step

Quitting smoking is a major lifestyle change. There are many benefits to being smoke-free. It takes planning and dedication to achieve success. While it is ultimately up to the smoker to not pick up a cigarette, this process can be made easier with support.

Smokers are usually experts on the health ramifications of smoking. Knowing that smoking significantly increases an individual’s risk of lung cancer, heart disease and emphysema is usually not enough to make a person quit. The physical addiction to nicotine must be addressed. In order to successfully quit, a person must additionally evaluate their habits and create new, pleasurable ones.

The Process

The decision to quit smoking is one of the most important decisions you will ever make. Overcoming a nicotine addiction will have great benefits to all aspects of your life, and that of those around you. It is not a decision to be made lightly. It is important to realize that the process will be difficult, and to plan for those challenges so that you do not become discouraged.  The more you plan ahead, the better your chances of success.

When do you want to quit? Pick a date after which you will no longer smoke. Will that date be next week?  Several weeks from now? Consider carefully before choosing the date. Make sure that it will be a date when you will commit seriously to no longer smoking, and no more excuses. For example if the winter holidays are coming up, and you know that you are overly stressed during that time, perhaps that would not be the best time to attempt to quit. Quitting smoking is the perfect New Year’s resolution, however (probably one you have made before,) thus you may choose to make January 1st your quit date. You may want to choose your own birthday, or the birthday of a loved one. There is no better gift that you can give to yourself or to someone who cares about you. You may choose the first day of fall, winter, spring or summer as your quit date. Consider it a day of new beginnings and endless possibility.

Cold Turkey -  Many people believe that the only way to quit smoking is to do so “cold turkey”.  This phrase is generally understood to mean quitting abruptly without gradually tapering off and without the use of any cessation aids. What does “cold turkey” actually mean? There are several versions of the origin of this phrase. One version, from the early 1900’s uses the phrase to refer to something done without preparation,  as preparing cold turkey requires little effort in the kitchen. Another, more graphic version uses the phrase to describe addicts, especially heroin addicts, in withdrawal. While in withdrawal these addicts tended to display pale skin pallor with goose bumps, much like a plucked turkey. This method of quitting is associated with lower rates of success than methods that employ the use of cessation aids.

Cessation Aids – Consult your physician regarding the appropriate cessation aid for you. There are several FDA-approved medications to assist smokers in quitting. Your physician may recommend nicotine gum, the patch, an inhaler, or the oral medication Bupropion SR. Once you and your physician have agreed on the best aid for you, use it only as directed.

Create New Habits

 It will be important for you to not only eliminate smoking from your day, but to use the time and energy previously dedicated to smoking, in other ways. Consider your habits surrounding smoking. Think about ways to change those habits and create new, healthy habits. For more detailed information regarding triggers, habits and rituals, see that section on our website.

Enlist Support

Overcoming your nicotine habit will require effort and dedication on your part. You will have a better chance of success if you don’t try to do it alone. Tell friends and family members that you are quitting. Announce it on the FaceBook site Quit Pals. Ask your friends for their help and encouragement. If any of them smoke, ask them to not offer you any cigarettes, and if possible, not to smoke around you. Join a support group like Quit Pals, attend smoking cessation seminars, obtain the services of a cessation counselor, Sail into a smoke-free world onboard The Quit Smoking Cruise or go away to Quit Smoking Boot Camp. Asking for assistance is not a sign of weakness. There are many people who want to help and support you in your efforts to become healthy.  Perhaps when you quit you can do the same for someone else.

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