Finding A Reason To Stop Smoking

The reasons to stop smoking are numerous. When you decide to quit, you must decide which ones are most important to you. Are you tired of people complaining about the smell? Does the mounting cost of cigarettes cut into your budget? These are all bothersome, but for many people it is health concerns that matter the most.

Although there are long term-consequences to having been a heavy smoker, many fade over time. When a former addict has been a non-smoker for fifteen years, their risk of many vascular problems returns to the same level as non-smokers. In other words, although smoking puts you in danger of heart disease for a long time to come, that additional risk fades away a little each year you do not smoke.

In fact, after just five years your risk of heart attack or coronary heart disease are reduced to only half that of a smoker. It may take more than a decade for your risk to return all the way to to baseline, but even a few years of nonsmoking will drastically improve your odds. Even going twenty four hours without a cigarette is said to decrease your statistical chance of a heart attack that day.

The chance of having a stroke is increased by nicotine's effect on your circulation. But in contrast to some of the very long term effects, this risk can diminish greatly within just five years. Within five to ten years, a former smoker is no more at risk than a non-smoker.

These are macro-effects. They are seen only in aggregate. On a more personal level, there are perceptible improvements in health. Newly minted non-smokers feel less fatigue and may notice an improvement in breathing. During the first months of abstinence, they may notice that chronic coughs and sinus problems fade away. One reason for this is that the microscopic hairs that keep your lungs clear begin to heal when they are no longer being assaulted with toxic smoke.

For some people these long term benefits are quite an incentive. Particularly after chalking up several smoke free years, it can be inspiring to think about all the subtle benefits you have gained through self discipline. But many people need a more immediate reward to remind themselves of, especially in the first days of smoking cessation. Even during these first days when they are still suffering withdrawal, positive changes are already noticeable.

Noticeable improvement happens within twenty four hours. As nerve endings recover, the sense of smell returns and taste improves. Carbon monoxide is slowly purged from the bloodstream, and in just eight hours the level of oxygen carried by the blood returns to normal. A mere twenty minutes is enough to measure an improvement in health. The pulse slows to a more appropriate rate, and blood pressure goes back to its normal level.

Every day that someone goes without using tobacco, they are a little better off, health wise. You can set your sights on the long term, when you can look forward to improved heart health, or you can motivate yourself by thinking about the immediate improvement in your circulation. Quitting is a very hard thing to do, and everyone needs to find their own reasons to stop smoking.