Cigarette smoking is one of the leading causes of preventable death. Quitting cigarettes is one of the best things you will ever do for your health!
Health benefits begin in as little as 20mins after the last cigarette smoked and continue to improve every day thereafter.
The timeline to tangible real benefits is almost immediate, it’s faster than most people realize. When you stop smoking cigarettes, your lungs have the chance to repair and you will be able to breathe much easier. It’s never too late to quit.
Quitting smoking is one of the most important things you can do to reduce your risk of many types of cancer. No matter how long you have smoked, quitting will benefit your health in both the immediate and long-term future, even if you already have health problems.
In just 20 mins Your pulse rate and blood pressure will typically return to normal
After only 8 hours Oxygen levels in your blood begin returning to normal, and nicotine and carbon monoxide levels in your blood have halved, breathing is easier.
In just 12 Hours since your last cigarette almost all of the nicotine is out of your system.
After 24 hours the risk of heart attack and stroke begins to decrease. Smoking is the top cause of heart attacks. If you’ve already had a heart attack and cut out cigarettes, you reduce your chance of having another by 50%.
After 48 hours Your sense of taste and smell start to improve and begin returning to normal as the nerve endings responsible for these sensations begin to heal, now that’s sensational!
After 3 days / 72 hours Nicotine is completely eliminated from the body and as a result nicotine withdrawal symptoms will have reached their peak.
5 to 10 days The average smoker will begin to notice a reduction in the number of nicotine cravings experienced in a day (you’re getting there!)
After 1 month Your circulation starts to improve. You may notice that physical activity becomes a lot easier. The lungs begin to heal and capacity improves, you may notice less coughing and shortness of breath. You may start to feel sensations more easily, and your hands and feet will be warmer as well. Good circulation is also linked to healthier blood pressure, pulse, and blood-oxygen levels.
After 2 months You’ll be free of the addiction and any psychological effects of withdrawal should have completely ended. Circulation continues to improve. You might notice a boost in general energy levels, also.
After 9 months The lungs have significantly healed themselves. The delicate, hair-like structures inside the lungs known as cilia start to grow back. Your lung function could have improved by as much as 10%.
After 1 year: Your risk of heart disease decreases by around 50%. This risk will continue to drop past the 1-year mark. Nothing else you can do has such a dramatic effect on heart health.
After 5 years the body has healed itself enough for the arteries and blood vessels to begin to widen again, lowering the risk of stroke. The risk of stroke will continue to reduce as the body heals more and more each day. The risk of mouth, throat, esophageal, and bladder cancers will be just half of what it was when you smoked. The risk of cervical cancer will fall to that of a nonsmoker. Your risk of stroke falls to the same as that of someone who has never smoked.
After 10 Years The chances of developing lung cancer and dying from it are roughly about half compared with someone who continues to smoke. The likelihood of developing mouth, throat, or pancreatic cancer has significantly reduced.
After 15 years Congratulations! You’ve done much to reverse the damage that cigarette smoking causes. Your risk of both heart disease and heart attack is now the same as someone who has never smoked. After 15 years of having quit smoking, the likelihood of developing coronary heart disease is the equivalent of a non smoker. Similarly, the risk of developing pancreatic cancer has reduced to the same level as a non-smoker.
After 20 years Now you’ve done it! The risk of death from smoking related causes, including both lung disease and cancer, drops to the level of a person who has never smoked in their life. Also, the risk of developing pancreatic cancer has reduced to that of someone who has never smoked.