How important is it to stop smoking?

It is very important. Tobacco use remains the single most preventable cause of death in the United States. Cigarette smoking accounts for nearly one-third of all cancer deaths in this country each year.

• Benefits of Quitting
• Why Quitting Smoking is Important
• Reasons to Quit Smoking
• Quitting Smoking
• Deciding to quit smoking

Smoking is the most common risk factor for the development of lung cancer, which is the leading cause of cancer death. It is also associated with many other types of cancer, including cancers of the esophagus, larynx, kidney, pancreas, and cervix. Smoking also increases the risk of other health problems, such as chronic lung disease and heart disease. Smoking during pregnancy can have adverse effects on the unborn child, such as premature delivery and low birth weight.

What are the immediate benefits of stopping smoking?

The health benefits of smoking cessation (quitting) are immediate and substantial. Almost immediately, a person's circulation begins to improve and the level of carbon monoxide in the blood begins to decline. (Carbon monoxide, a colorless, odorless gas found in cigarette smoke, reduces the blood's ability to carry oxygen.) A person's pulse rate and blood pressure, which may be abnormally high while smoking, begin to return to normal. Within a few days of quitting, a person's sense of taste and smell return, and breathing becomes increasingly easier.

• Stop Smoking Benefits Timetable

• What happens when you quit?

• What Happens When You Quit Smoking?

What are the long-term benefits of stopping smoking?

People who quit smoking live longer than those who continue to smoke. After 10 to 15 years, a previous tobacco user's risk of premature death approaches that of a person who has never smoked. About 10 years after quitting, an ex-smoker's risk of dying from lung cancer is 30 percent to 50 percent less than the risk for those who continue to smoke. Women who stop smoking before becoming pregnant or who quit in the first 3 months of pregnancy can reverse the risk of low birth weight for the baby and reduce other pregnancy-associated risks. Quitting also reduces the risk of other smoking-related diseases, including heart disease and chronic lung disease.

There are also many benefits to smoking cessation for people who are sick or who have already developed cancer. Smoking cessation reduces the risk for developing infections, such as pneumonia, which often causes death in patients with other existing diseases.

• What happens after you quit smoking?

• Benefits of Quitting Smoking Over Time

• Fact sheet about health benefits of smoking cessation

• The health benefits of quitting smoking

Does cancer risk change after quitting smoking?

Quitting smoking reduces the risk for developing cancer, and this benefit increases the longer a person remains 'smoke free.' People who quit smoking reduce their risk of developing and dying from lung cancer. They also reduce their risk of other types of cancer. The risk of premature death and the chance of developing cancer due to cigarettes depends on the number of years of smoking, the number of cigarettes smoked per day, the age at which smoking began, and the presence or absence of illness at the time of quitting. For people who have already developed cancer, quitting smoking reduces the risk of developing another primary cancer.

• Former Smokers and Cancer Risk

• Cigarettes: The lung cancer risk lingers

• What Are the Risk Factors for Lung Cancer?

At what age is smoking cessation the most beneficial?

Smoking cessation benefits men and women at any age. Some older adults may not perceive the benefits of quitting smoking; however, smokers who quit before age 50 have half the risk of dying in the next 16 years compared with people who continue to smoke. By age 64, their overall chance of dying is similar to that of people the same age who have never smoked. Older adults who quit smoking also have a reduced risk of dying from coronary heart disease and lung cancer. Additional, immediate benefits (such as improved circulation, and increased energy and breathing capacity) are other good reasons for older adults to become smoke free.

What are some of the difficulties associated with quitting smoking?

Quitting smoking may cause short-term after-effects, especially for those who have smoked a large number of cigarettes for a long period of time. People who quit smoking are likely to feel anxious, irritable, hungry, more tired, and have difficulty sleeping. They may also have difficulty concentrating. Many tobacco users gain weight when they quit, but usually less than 10 pounds. These changes do subside. People who kick the habit have the opportunity for a healthier future.

• Why Quitting Is Hard

• Why Is Quitting Smoking So Difficult? The Science Behind Addiction

• Smoke and Barrel E Liquid

• Challenges When Quitting

• Why it's so hard to quit smoking

What is nicotine replacement therapy?

Nicotine is the drug in cigarettes and other forms of tobacco that causes addiction. Nicotine replacement products deliver small, steady doses of nicotine into the body, which helps to relieve the withdrawal symptoms often felt by people trying to quit smoking. These products, which are available in four forms (patches, gum, nasal spray, and inhaler), appear to be equally effective. There is evidence that combining the nicotine patch with nicotine gum or nicotine nasal spray increases long-term quit rates compared with using a single type of nicotine replacement therapy. Nicotine gum, in combination with nicotine patch therapy, may also reduce withdrawal symptoms better than either medication alone.

• Nicotine Replacement Therapy for Quitting Tobacco

• Nicotine Replacement Therapy: An Overview

What if efforts to quit result in relapse?

Many smokers find it difficult to quit smoking, and it may take two or three attempts before they are finally able to quit. Although relapse rates are most common in the first few weeks or months after quitting, people who stop smoking for 3 months are often able to remain cigarette-free for the rest of their lives.

• Slips & Relapses

• Understanding Slips and Relapses

• Predictors of smoking relapse by duration of abstinence

• Smoking Vapor

• Smoking Relapse: What to Do If You Start Smoking Again

• What to do if you relapse after quitting

What agencies and organizations are available to help people stop smoking?

A number of organizations provide information and materials about where to find help to stop smoking. State and local health agencies often have information about community smoking cessation programs. Information to help people quit smoking is also available through community hospitals, public libraries, health maintenance organizations, health fairs, bookstores, and community helplines.

Several national organizations provide information about how to quit smoking:

Government:

• The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) issues smoking cessation guidelines and other materials for physicians, health care professionals, and the general public. Printed copies are available by contacting:

• The National Institutes of Health (NIH) supports research to help prevent, detect, diagnose, and treat diseases and disabilities. Several of NIH's Institutes provide information on the harmful effects of smoking.

• The National Cancer Institute (NCI) conducts research on smoking cessation and promotes programs to reduce the rate of illness and death associated with smoking. Several NCI publications on smoking-related topics are available from the NCI supported Cancer Information Service (CIS).

• The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) supports research on drug abuse and addiction, including the effects of cigarettes and other nicotine products. The NIDA Infofax service offers drug abuse and addiction information in English and Spanish. Users can receive fact sheets by fax or mail, or listen to recorded messages.

• The Office on Smoking and Health of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention distributes pamphlets, posters, scientific reports, and public service announcements about smoking, and maintains a bibliographic database of smoking and health-related materials.

• The Office of the Surgeon General has information about techniques being used to treat tobacco use and dependence. The Office of the Surgeon General's Web site has press releases, documents, and other information on tobacco use and cessation.

Nonprofit:

• The American Cancer Society (ACS) offers materials on smoking cessation and other smoking and tobacco-related topics. The ACS also sponsors a smoking cessation clinic called FreshStart, which is available in most of the United States.

• The American Lung Association (ALA), an organization dedicated to fighting smoking-related diseases, provides information about local smoking cessation programs as well as its Freedom From Smoking clinics for individuals and organizations. For more information or the phone number for a local ALA chapter, contact ALA's national headquarters.