Benefits of giving up smoking

The benefits begin straight away. You reduce your risk of getting serious disease no matter what age you give up. However, the sooner you stop, the greater the reduction in your risk. If you have smoked since being a teenager or young adult:
If you stop smoking before the age of about 35, your life expectancy is only slightly less than people who have never smoked.
If you stop smoking before the age of 50, you decrease the risk of dying from smoking-related diseases by 50%.

The benefits when you quit smoking, on your health, finances and confidence can motivate you to stop and stay stopped. Within just 20 minutes of quitting the healing process begins.
What's in it for you?
Family members, friends, colleagues and associates who don't smoke also benefit when you stop. Find out how...

Benefits of Quitting Smoking

• Blood pressure and pulse return to normal.
• Nicotine and carbon monoxide levels in blood reduce by half. Oxygen levels return to normal.
• Carbon monoxide will be eliminated from the body. Lungs start to clear out mucous and other smoking debris.
• There is no nicotine left in the body. Ability to taste and smell is greatly improved.
• Breathing becomes easier. Bronchial tubes begin to relax and energy levels increase.
• Circulation improves.
• Coughs, wheezing and breathing problems improve as lung functions are increased by up to 10%.
• Risk of heart attack falls to about half that of a smoker.
• Risk of lung cancer falls to about half that of a smoker. Risk of heart attack falls to the same as someone who has never smoked.

More Benefits of Giving Up Smoking

Confidence
Stopping smoking is a challenge. Once you have quit, you will know you can succeed at difficult takes and take more control of your life. Quitting helps you believe in yourself.

Fitness
Smoking makes it harder to exercise and reduces the benefits to your body. Smokers have more coughs and colds than non-smokers and take longer to feel well again.

Money
In a way, giving up smoking is like getting a pay rise, as much as £1500 a year if you smoke 20 cigarettes a day.

Appearance
Skin starved of oxygen by smoking becomes dry and grey. Wrinkles around the eyes and mouth develop much earlier and the tar stains your teeth and fingers.

Fertility
Men who smoke may suffer impotence due to damage to the blood vessels in the penis. Sperm quality and density can also be affected by smoking. Smokers may produce less sperm and their sperm may have more abnormalities.
Women who smoke take longer to conceive and are more likely to have a miscarriage.

Childbirth
Babies born to mothers who smoked in pregnancy are more likely to be premature, stillborn or die shortly after birth. A baby exposed to tobacco smoke has a higher risk of dying from cot death.

Children
Children whose parents smoke are more likely to get pneumonia and bronchitis in their first year of life, to suffer from more frequent and more severe asthma attacks and to become regular smokers themselves.


By stopping smoking, you can improve your health and enjoy a longer, healthier life.
You will also save money: a 20-a-day smoker now spends over £2,000 a year on cigarettes.
As smoking also causes wrinkled, damaged skin, giving up is likely to make you look better too.