KSIMC Birmingham
Mehfil e Abbas
Stop smoking: The benefits and aids to quitting. (Part 1)
This sheet reviews the health benefits of stopping smoking and aids to Quitting. Stopping smoking is always beneficial to heath and it is never too late. Every cigarette smoked damages the lungs in a way that may not show up until later in life. After the age of 35-40 years, for every year of continued smoking a person loses 3 months of life expectancy. Many smokers think that they will be more miserable when they stop but the evidence is that they will have better mental health and be happier.
Many smokers continue smoking not by choice but because they are addicted. A large part of this addiction arises from dependence on the nicotine delivered. Addiction does not make it impossible to stop doing something, it just means that there are powerful urges and needs that have to be overcome in order to do so. Anything that can strengthen the resolve to resist these urges and needs or reduce their frequency or intensity can help in overcoming the addiction.
It is not clear why some attempts to stop succeed and others do not, though smoking fewer cigarettes per day, not needing to smoke first thing in the morning and not suffering from mental health problems or other addictions are favourable factors for success.
Two major longitudinal studies have demonstrated the benefits of stopping smoking at an early age. The 50 year follow up of the British doctors’ study revealed that if smokers quit before the age of 30 they can avoid more than 90% of the smoking-attributable risk of lung cancer. The authors concluded that stopping smoking at age 60, 50, 40, or 30 gains, respectively, about 3, 6, 9, or 10 years of life expectancy.
Some of the health benefits from stopping smoking can occur quite quickly as the table below shows. Other health improvements are seen over the course of a number of years, depending on how long a person has smoked.
Source: Smokefree NHS website.
Some smokers switch to pipes or cigars in the belief that they are less dangerous forms of smoking. However, there is no safe level of use of any tobacco product. Some smokers may incur the same risks as smoking cigarettes and may even increase them, especially if they inhale the pipe or cigar smoke.
Similarly, waterpipes (also known as shisha or hookah pipes) are potentially just as hazardous as smoking other forms of tobacco.
Electronic cigarettes are increasing in popularity as an alternative to conventional smoked tobacco products but there is currently little research and no official guidance on their safety in the United Kingdom. Furthermore there is no clear evidence yet that e-cigarettes are effective as a stop smoking aid although survey data suggests that about 4 in10 users do utilise them in an attempt to quit smoking. A decision on the regulation of e-cigarettes is expected to be made by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in May 2013. The World Health Organisation is also expected to publish guidance on e-cigarettes in 2013.
There are many things that smokers can do to improve their chances of quitting. These falls into two categories: medication and psychological support.
Medications aim to help smokers quit smoking by reducing the chemically-driven need to smoke and/or blocking the pleasure associated with smoking. Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) works by replacing the nicotine provided in cigarettes and allowing smokers to slowly reduce their dependence on nicotine. Varenicline (Champix) works by alleviating nicotine withdrawal and reducing the “rewards” of smoking. There is evidence to suggest that using a combination of NRT medications (e.g. combining the nicotine patch with gum or lozenges) is more effective than using them in isolation.
Surveys consistently find that a majority of smokers want to quit.
In 2008, 68% of current smokers in Great Britain reported that they wanted to quit, with 22% saying they would very much like to give up and a further 23% saying they wanted to stop “quite a lot”. 83% of respondents gave at least one health reason for wanting to stop smoking. The cost of smoking was the next most common reason people gave for wanting to quit with 31% saying smoking was too expensive and a waste of money.