If you smoke, giving up is probably the greatest single step you can take to improve your health. In the UK, approximately 10 million adults (about a quarter of the population) smoke cigarettes. 25% of men in the UK are smokers compared with 23% of women.

- Smoking is one of the biggest causes of death and illness in the UK. Every year, around 114,000 smokers die from smoking-related diseases, such as heart disease and lung cancer.

- About 70% of smokers say that they want to stop smoking, but most believe they are unable to. However, around half of all smokers eventually manage to give up.

- Smoking harms nearly every organ of the body, causing many diseases and reduces quality of life and life expectancy.

- The younger a person quits, the greater the benefit but stopping smoking is beneficial at any age.

-  Many smokers think that smoking helps relieve stress but in fact ex-smokers are more likely to have better mental health and be happier.

 

A cigarette may look harmless enough - tobacco leaves covered in classic white paper. But in fact, each cigarette contains a complex mix of chemicals deliberately combined to keep smokers hooked. Cigarette manufacturers design cigarettes to provide smokers with a steady dose of nicotine. And its not just nicotine that makes smoking so enjoyable. Cigarettes also contain a variety of additives to make them nicer tasting and easy to smoke. A former tobacco company director commented: "The modern cigarette is extremely complex. It contains everything from sugar to liquorice, chocolate, herbs and spices. There are 8000 or more chemicals that come out when you light it and having them delivered in the right ratios is a substantial engineering feat."

Chemicals In Tobacco Smoke

When a cigarette burns it releases thousands of different chemicals, many of them harmful to health.  The three main components of cigarette smoke are:

Nicotine - a fast-acting drug that makes smokers crave cigarettes
Carbon monoxide - a poisonous gas that reduces oxygen in the blood stream causing breathing problems
Tar - a sticky black residue made up of thousands of chemicals that stays in the smoker’s lungs and causes cancer.

Nicotine is very addictive. But it is the tar and other chemicals in cigarettes that cause cancer. Other harmful chemicals found in cigarettes include:
 

Acetone - used in nail varnish remover
Ammonia - used in dry cleaning fluids
Arsenic - used in pest control and insecticides
Benzene - used in chemical manufacture
Cadmium - used in batteries
Formaldehyde - used to preserve dead bodies. 

 

People smoke for many different reasons. Firstly, smoking is very addictive. Secondly, smokers have been influenced by the clever marketing tactics of tobacco companies for many years. There are also many other personal reasons why people smoke.

- If you smoke you are probably addicted to nicotine. Nicotine dependency is one of the main reasons why people continue to smoke. Smokers may find it hard to give up, even when their smoking makes them very sick.

 
- Nicotine is a stimulant that increases your heart rate and affects many different parts of your brain and body. Nicotine withdrawal symptoms include cravings, irritability, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, restlessness and disturbed sleep.

 
- Cigarettes are deliberately designed to give you a fast nicotine hit. It takes just 10 seconds for the drug to reach your brain from inhaled cigarette smoke.
 

There are lots of good reasons to quit. Everyone's motivations to stop will be different. Here are a few ideas to get you started.
 

Improve Your Health, Whatever Your Age

Giving up smoking at any age will increase your life expectancy, provided you stop before you develop cancer or another serious disease.
The sooner you give up smoking the better. After:

20 minutes - your blood pressure and pulse return to normal
8 hours - nicotine, carbon monoxide and oxygen levels in your blood begin to return to normal
2 days - your lungs start to clear and your sense of taste and smell begin to return
3 days - breathing is easier and your energy levels increase
2-12 weeks - circulation improves and exercise gets easier
3-9 months - breathing problems, coughing, shortness of breath and wheezing improve
5 years - risk of having a heart attack falls to about half that of a smoker
10 years - risk of lung cancer falls to about half that of a smoker. You have the same risk of a heart attack as someone who has never smoked.
 

Save Yourself Thousands Of Pounds

Smoking is very expensive. At today's rates, smoking around twenty cigarettes a day for the next twenty years would cost you over £30,000.
Write down how much you spend on cigarettes every day for a week. Then work out how much your smoking costs you every year. Think what else you could do with the money.

Look After Those Around You

If you smoke, you may be exposing your friends, partner or children to your smoke. So your smoking could be endangering the health of people you love. Smoking may reduce your fertility and your chances of having a baby. And of course, smoking when pregnant can harm your child.

Smoking can also have a big impact on your home. Quitting smoking will mean no more stale cigarette smells, smoke stained walls, cigarette burns on your furniture and ash trays to clear up.

Stop The Stress And The Guilt

More and more buildings are now non-smoking so finding a place to smoke can be quite stressful. How many times have you felt anxious because you didn’t know when you were going to get your next cigarette? Think how nice it would be not to get stressed about where you can go to smoke.
Smokers often feel guilty. You may be trying to hide your smoking from your partner or children. Have you seen people looking at you disapprovingly when you smoke in public? Sometimes feeling guilty about smoking means that you don't enjoy cigarettes as much as you did. Giving up could make you feel more in control and better about yourself.

Look Younger And More Attractive

Smoking ages your skin. It also makes you smell of smoke and stains your fingers and teeth. And in the long term, smoking could damage your circulation leading to gangrene and even amputation. So give up now before it’s too late.

 

Giving up is the best thing a smoker can do to improve their health. Most smokers say that they would like to give up if they could. But for some, stopping isn't simple.

Know Yourself

Before you give up make sure you know why you want to stop. Ask yourself:
 

Why do I smoke?
Why do I want to stop smoking?
Is this the right time to stop smoking?
When am I most likely to give in to cravings?
What can I do to overcome these cravings?
Who can support me whilst I’m giving up?
How can I reward myself for giving up?
When would be a good quit date?
 

Once you've thought about all these issues you may decide you need some support with quitting for good.
 

Get Professional Help

There are professionals available to help you give up.  The NHS has a range of services on offer. These include:

- Stop smoking groups - sessions run by health professionals for groups of smokers who want to stop. In the sessions you can find out more about ways to give up and share tips and experiences with others.
- One to one counselling - in many areas individual counselling is available to help you give up. 

 

Control Your Withdrawal Symptoms

There are several products on the market to help control withdrawal symptoms you may experience when giving up smoking. Many are free on prescription from your GP.

Nicotine Replacement Therapy can help you by reducing your nicotine cravings. NRT has been shown to double your chances of successfully quitting. It is also less addictive than smoking and doesn't cause cancer. NRT is available on prescription or over the counter as gum, patches, tablets, lozenges, nasal spray or inhalers. You usually take a 10-12 week course.

Zyban is another drug that can help you give up smoking. It doesn’t contain nicotine. Instead, it works by reducing your desire to smoke and relieving withdrawal symptoms. Zyban is only available on prescription and is not suitable for everyone. So talk to your doctor if you want to find out more.

Putting On Weight

Many people are worried that when they give up smoking they may put on weight. This may be because:
 

- Nicotine suppresses your appetite and makes your body burn calories faster
- Smoking affects your taste and smell, so food may be much tastier when you quit
- Some people replace cigarettes with snacks and sweets when they give up.
 

If you’re worried about putting on weight:
 

- Try to eat a balanced diet
- Do regular moderate physical exercise
- Give yourself rewards that don't involve food or drink
- Remember that once you’ve given up it will be much easier to stay active, helping you to lose any weight you do put on.
 

Giving up smoking is hard work and it may take some people several attempts to quit for good.  Remember that nicotine is very addictive and watch out for situations where you might be tempted to have 'just one cigarette'.  If you do start smoking again, think about where you went wrong and try to learn from your experiences for next time. Phone the NHS or Quit helplines to help you get back on track.
 

Further information and support:

• NHS Smoking Helpline
0800 169 0169
www.gosmokefree.co.uk

• Smoking Quitline
0800 00 22 00
www.quit.org.uk