The benefits of quitting smoking are significant and varied.

Quitting smoking has many immediate, medium and long-term benefits that smokers must be regularly reminded of in order to maintain their motivation.

When it comes to quitting smoking, smokers sometimes tend to get bogged down in nostalgia for the few pleasures they have lost, while forgetting the addiction and the countless disadvantages of smoking that led them to quit. An effective approach is to focus on the benefits of quitting smoking, which reinforces the motivation to quit. Here is a reminder of the many benefits that should encourage all smokers to turn away from smoking.

Immediate benefits

The benefit financial is the most immediate and one of the most visible. It is also one of the main motivations for quitting smoking, even if it is generally not sufficient[1]. a day without tobacco nevertheless allows substantial savings to be made which, cumulatively, can represent, in France, around 330 euros/month[2], or nearly 4,000 euros/year. These savings are all the more significant in households with the lowest incomes, where there are more smokers[3]This lever encouraging people to stop smoking has also been reinforced by the COVID-19 crisis.[4].

In terms of health, blood pressure and heart rate return to normal 20 minutes after the last cigarette. Eight o'clock Later, the oxygenation of the cells returns to normal and the amount of carbon monoxide in the blood is reduced by half. 24 hours After quitting smoking, the body no longer contains nicotine and carbon monoxide, the lungs begin to eliminate mucus and smoke residues.

Taste and smell improve 48 hours after the last cigarette. Breathing is easier 72 hours after quitting smoking, which helps you feel more energetic.

Medium-term benefits

After two weeks smoking cessation, blood clotting returns to normal and the risk of heart attacks and strokes begins to decrease. Coughing and fatigue are reduced from the third month after quitting smoking. Bronchial cilia grow back between 1 and 9 months after the last cigarette.

At the same time, the skin ages less quickly, the complexion is brighter, teeth yellow less quickly. The body becomes more resistant and we get sick less, digestion is facilitated and heartburn disappears. Sexual health also improves, in terms of fertility and reduction of erectile dysfunction; women can take oral contraception without risk of complications. Quit smoking GOOD before pregnancy also helps reduce, in particular, the risks of miscarriage, premature birth and giving birth to a baby with low birth weight.

Quitting smoking also brings a psychological benefit, this weaning representing a personal victory which strengthens self-esteem and reinforces the feeling of personal effectiveness. This victory over oneself is generally accompanied by an improvement in the social representation of the ex-smoker, both among non-smokers and smokers, since two thirds of the latter also want to quit smoking. Quitting smoking also helps improve concentration, reduce anxiety and get a better night's sleep.

Long term benefits

After one year When you stop smoking, the risk of heart attack is reduced by half. The risk of stroke becomes the same as that of a non-smoker. 5 years After quitting smoking, the risk of developing cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus and bladder is reduced by half. The risk of lung cancer is reduced by half after 10 years smoking cessation, while the risk of laryngeal and pancreatic cancer decreases. 15 years old After the last cigarette, the risk of coronary heart disease returns to the same as that of non-smokers. Ultimately, life expectancy increases by 3 to 10 years, depending on the age of smokers when they quit smoking.

If you completely quit smoking using an electronic cigarette, the vaping period must remain limited so as not to expose yourself to other health risks, particularly respiratory health risks.[5].

Societal and environmental benefits

Beyond the benefits on the health, morale and economic and social situation of smokers and those around them, quitting smoking also brings benefits:

• For the environment, by reducing emissions from the production, transport, consumption and waste of tobacco products. This impact is particularly significant in regions where tobacco is grown.
• By avoiding smoking in private homes, we also significantly reduce indoor air pollution and the exposure of those around us to passive smoking.
• For public health, by limiting the number of pathologies due to tobacco consumption, by reducing the pressure on health services and by contributing to better general health. The rapid reduction in cardiovascular risk explains the almost immediate reduction in health costs as soon as smoking stops.
• For public finances, the gains are observed not only for Social Security, but are also reflected in the State budget.
• For businesses, as well as for households, a person's quitting smoking is accompanied by more or less visible, but very real, gains (productivity gain and reduction in sick leave in the company; increase in household budgets).

All of these benefits, whether personal or collective, should encourage smokers to commit to quitting smoking, and above all to maintain their abstinence over time.

Keywords: smoking cessation, benefits, withdrawal

©Generation Without Tobacco

MF

Sources: Public Health France, Tabac Info Service, National Committee against Smoking, French Federation of Cardiology.

[1] Pasquereau A, Hochet M, Andler R, Guignard R, Nguyen-Thanh V. Opinions on increasing tobacco taxes and consequences on motivation to quit. Results of the 2018 Public Health Barometer France. Saint-Maurice: Public Health France; 2020. 10 p.

[2] For consumption of one pack/day, the price of a pack of cigarettes in France is €11 in February 2023. The monthly amount is to be adjusted according to the number of cigarettes consumed.

[3] Pasquereau A, Andler R, Guignard R, Gautier A, Soullier N, Richard JB, et al, National and regional prevalence of smoking in France in 2021 among 18-75 year-olds, according to the Public Health France barometer, Bull Epidemiol Hebd. 2022;(26):470-80.

[4] Jartoux C, Guignard R, Quatremère G, Andler R, Pasquereau A, Nguyen Thanh V. Smokers' attitudes during the Covid-19 health crisis: synthesis of qualitative and quantitative studies. Saint-Maurice, Public Health France, 2022, 29 p.

[5] Vaping-Associated Lung Disease, Government of Canada, modified August 29, 2022, consulted December 21, 2022.