The Effects of Smoking on Human Health

Smoking Effects

• Health Effects of Smoking
• How to Stop Smoking
• Smoking Cessation
• Smoking and Cancer
• Quit Smoking Cigarettes

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The effects of smoking on human health are serious and in many cases, deadly. There are approximately 4000 chemicals in cigarettes, hundreds of which are toxic. The ingredients in cigarettes affect everything from the internal functioning of organs to the efficiency of the body's immune system. The effects of cigarette smoking are destructive and widespread.

Smoking Effects on the Human Body

• Toxic ingredients in cigarette smoke travel throughout the body, causing damage in several different ways.
• Nicotine reaches the brain within 10 seconds after smoke is inhaled. It has been found in every part of the body and in breast milk.
• Carbon monoxide binds to hemoglobin in red blood cells, preventing affected cells from carrying a full load of oxygen.
• Cancer-causing agents (carcinogens) in tobacco smoke damage important genes that control the growth of cells, causing them to grow abnormally or to reproduce too rapidly.
• The carcinogen benzo(a)pyrene binds to cells in the airways and major organs of smokers.
• Smoking affects the function of the immune system and may increase the risk for respiratory and other infections.
• There are several likely ways that cigarette smoke does its damage. One is oxidative stress that mutates DNA, promotes atherosclerosis, and leads to chronic lung injury. Oxidative stress is thought to be the general mechanism behind the aging process, contributing to the development of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and COPD.
• The body produces antioxidants to help repair damaged cells. Smokers have lower levels of antioxidants in their blood than do nonsmokers.
• Smoking is associated with higher levels of chronic inflammation, another damaging process that may result in oxidative stress.

Read more about how cigarettes harm us from head to toe: The Effects of Cigarette Smoking

What Happens When You Quit Smoking

What Happens When You Quit Smoking

What happens when you quit smoking? Your life gets better. A lot better.

 Here are some details.

Within the first few hours the intense constriction of your blood vessels begins to relax.

 The nicotine from just one cigarette can cause the blood vessels to constrict for up to six hours. 

This effect goes away quickly when you stop. As your blood vessels relax, your blood pressure decreases and strain is taken off your heart.

Within eight hours the carbon monoxide starts to clear from your blood stream and the oxygen levels in your blood begin to rise. BTW – measuring carbon dioxide levels lets insurance companies know if people who claim to be smoke-free really are.

Over two days you sense of smell and taste improve. You’ll enjoy your food more than you have in years.

Over several weeks, the risk of both heart disease and lung disease start to decrease. The longer you go without cigarettes, the lower the risk becomes.

Go one year without smoking and you cut your risk of heart disease in half. Stay smoke free for 10-15 years and your risk of heart disease will be the same as if you never have smoked.

Your risk of cancer and stroke also decrease dramatically as time goes by.

Unfortunately, if you’ve already developed emphysema the damage can’t be completely reversed. However, stopping smoking will prevent progression and will improve lung function.

In the shorter term (three to twelve months) chronic cough and phlegm production will decrease. Shortness of breath will decrease and exercise tolerance will increase.

You can also expect to have more money in your pocket beginning immediately. I suggest you save the money you’re no longer spending on cigarettes and use at least some of it to reward yourself for giving up smoking.

So that's some of what happens when you quit smoking. Here's a program to help you stop smoking and start noticing these changes:

Quit Smoking Today

Helpful Hints to Kick the (Smoking) Habit

If you are ready to quit smoking, our UM smoking cessation experts have some advice for you.

 
You know you need to quit. You really want to quit. But smoking has become such a huge part of your life that you just can't imagine waking up in the morning without reaching for a cigarette, finishing a meal without lighting up or hanging out with your friends -- all smokers -- without smoking yourself.
So, how does one go about kicking the habit for good? What is going to make this year any different than previous ones when you resolved to swear off nicotine?
An effective strategy can help. If you're armed with a little knowledge, you can greatly improve your odds of success. You just have to know what you are up against.
"The difficulty people have when trying to quit around New Year's is that there is typically so much alcohol consumption during the holiday," said an associate professor of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
"The alcohol makes it much less likely that you will be able to quit because most smokers like to smoke when they drink. I tell people who want to quit around New Year's not to worry if they don't quit exactly on New Year's Day."
Choosing a quit date and sticking to it is an important part of breaking the habit. Smokers who want to become ex-smokers, however, must chose a date that makes sense for them.
"There is nothing wrong with making that day January 3rd or the 4th," our smoking cessation expert says. "Choosing a day later in the week after all of the parties and activities have died down is probably more realistic. You have to do what works for you because you don't want to set yourself up for failure."
One of the biggest mistakes smokers make when attempting to quit is that they give up the fight too soon if their initial efforts don't work. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over half of all adult smokers do manage to quit for good. Most of them, however, aren't successful the first time around. In fact, studies show that most smokers attempt to quit several times before they are able to make it stick.
"People shouldn't be hard on themselves," said our expert. "Quitting is a process. Smokers who want to quit and have tried and failed in the past shouldn't feel defeated because quitting is far from impossible. It is actually quite possible. There are more people out there who have successfully quit smoking than there are people who still smoke."

Smoke-Free Suggestions

Here are some tips our expert suggests to keep in mind if quitting is one of your goals:

• Put it in writing. Write down your reasons for quitting on 3 x 5-inch index cards so you can refer to them when you are tempted to smoke.
  
  
• Explore your motives for smoking. Keep a journal before you quit to document your feelings about your habit. You want to include details about where you smoke most often, when you smoke, with whom and why. Review your diary after four or five days to identify feelings and circumstances that trigger your cravings for nicotine.
  
  
• Modify your behavior. Write down your "triggers" on the left side of a piece of paper and on the right side, jot down how you plan to either avoid or cope with those situations or feelings that send you reaching for nicotine.
  
  
• Reduce the pleasure quotient. Most people have favorite brands of cigarettes. In the week or so leading up to your quit date, ditch your favorites for other, less-appealing varieties. For example, buy menthols if you normally don't smoke them. Buy low-tar filters or light versions of your favorite brand or try new, unusual brands that you've never smoked before. This practice will make the habit of smoking seem less appealing and easier to stop.
  
  
  
• Spread the news. Tell everyone you know you're quitting to develop a network of family members, co-workers and friends who can support your efforts.
  
  
• Get rid of smoking paraphernalia. Throw out all of your ashtrays, matches and lighters.
  
  
• Go cold turkey. Despite an urge to gradually cut back, stopping completely on your chosen quit date is the best approach to kicking the habit for good.
  
  
• Reward yourself. Come up with reasons to celebrate your quitting at regular intervals. For example, a week after you quit, go to the movies or bowling. A month after quitting, go to a nice hotel for an evening or treat yourself to a shopping spree. A year after quitting, go on a nice vacation with the money you save from no longer buying packs of cigarettes.
  
  
• If you relapse, don't panic. Identify what it was that triggered your desire to smoke again and come up with a way to cope with the trigger. The urge to smoke -- no matter how overwhelming -- will pass after a few minutes, whether or not you give into it.
  
  
• Seek help. If you aren't able to quit on your own, try using aids such as nicotine gum or the nicotine patch. If you still aren't able to quit, see your doctor about other options. You may also want to join a support group. Whatever you do, don't give up!

This page was last updated on: March, 14 2013.

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6 Tips - For Kicking Bad Habits

6 Tips - For Kicking Bad Habits

1. How Smoking Affects Your Looks & Life Slideshow
2. Tips to Quit Smoking Slideshow
3. Take the Quiz on Smoking

Eating all things in your line of sight because you just quit smoking? Drinking more coffee to try and slow down your overeating? Biting off people's heads in the morning because you've quit drinking coffee? When kicking bad habits, sometimes we "bite off more than we can chew." Whether you are trying to quit smoking, drinking, gambling or trying to eat better, kicking bad habits is a difficult and emotional process.
"New Year's Resolutions are a great motivator to shed unwanted weight, quit smoking or start spending more time with your family....But often, we see people take the 'cold turkey' approach to kicking a bad habit, which is not the most effective or healthy way of changing unwanted behaviors. In fact, this can often lead to new unwanted behaviors that take the place of the old ones." says Dr. Jeffrey Wilkins, Director of Addiction Medicine in the Thalians Department of Psychiatry at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.
Defining goals and setting realistic time-lines for kicking habits is the key to changing unwanted behaviors like smoking, overeating and caffeine addiction. While cigarette smoking is a habit that many people prefer to stop "cold turkey," for many other habits this approach can be a set-up for failure because our mind and body are not programmed to adjust so quickly to abrupt changes.
Consistent with the results of scientific studies, Dr. Wilkins recommends the following tips to help identify, plan and eventually kick bad habits for a healthier, happier New Year:

1. Define your goals and then commit yourself to achieving them. People who acknowledge that they need to make a change in their life are more likely to achieve that change than those individuals who think that they may, or may not, have a problem. Taking active steps towards making that change (i.e., joining a self-help group) will move you closer to success in kicking the habit. Change is not easy and requires commitment. As a start, by defining your specific behavior goals, you can begin tailoring your activities and attitudes accordingly.
   
   
2. Don't do it alone. Get help. If you choose to discuss your goals with others, choose people who want you to succeed. Quitting bad habits is hard enough without having to watch the people near you enjoying what you have now deprived yourself of. If you want to quit smoking and your spouse is still smoking, your goal will be significantly more challenging. Find someone with the same goals, who wants to kick the same habit. Find support from friends, family, colleagues, or professional support groups.
   
   
3. Establish clear and realistic sub-goals and timelines. Rome was not built in a day - if it was that easy to kick a bad habit, we simply wouldn't have bad habits. Chart your progress in a diary or calendar that outlines a realistic amount of time to eliminate the bad habit. If you are drinking 5 cups of coffee in the morning and have a goal of cutting down to one, give yourself a few weeks to achieve this (i.e., one cup less a week). The first big hurdle is to achieve 90-days of the target behavior.
   
   
4. Add, don't just subtract. Add competing desirable behaviors to compensate for the elimination of bad habits. We often need something to take the place of a habit to help us maintain focus to successfully kick a habit. By replacing bad habits with positive ones, like exercise, meditation, time with family, healthier foods and activities, you are less likely to replace old bad habits with new bad habits.
   
   
5. Allow for some slippage - but not constant slippage. If you have decided to give up sweets to lose a few pounds or protect against cavities, but decide to have a bit of your aunt's famous cheesecake, this is not an excuse to give up your goals and keep going. Plan ahead and set limits for yourself.
   
   
6. Reward yourself! Continue to acknowledge and reward yourself for the "baby-steps" you take in kicking a bad habit. Let the people around you reward your success and cheer you on the next step. This can be accomplished by setting up a "success amount" that continues to reward you as you continue to succeed. For example, you can treat yourself to a desired CD for every week of success and a DVD player for achieving 90-days of maintaining a target behavior. If you are going to buy these things anyway, you might as well do it in a way that helps you with your life goals.

For additional information, please visit our MedicineNet.com Quitting Smoking Forum.

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Guide to Quitting Smoking

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Quitting smoking is not easy, but you can do it. To have the best chance of quitting and staying quit, you need to know what you’re up against, what your options are, and where to go for help. You'll find this information here. Click on the topics below to get started.

 If you're interested in participating in research on quitting smoking, get more information about the E-Quit Study.