Benefits to Quitting Tobacco

Tobacco use can lead to tobacco/nicotine dependence and serious health problems. Tobacco smoke contains a deadly mix of more than 7,000 chemicals; hundreds are harmful, and about 70 can cause cancer. Smoking increases the risk for serious health problems, many diseases, and death. Quitting tobacco use greatly reduces the risk of:

  • Many types of cancer, including cancer of the lungs mouth, throat esophagus (the passage that connects the throat to the stomach), bladder, and pancreas (a gland that helps with digestion and maintaining proper blood sugar levels). Ten years after you quit smoking, your risk for lung cancer drops by half.
  • Heart disease, stroke, and peripheral vascular disease (narrowing of the blood vessels outside your heart). Just 1 year after quitting smoking, your risk for a heart attack drops sharply. Within 2 to 5 years after quitting smoking, your risk for stroke may reduce to about that of a nonsmoker’s.
  • Developing some lung diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease one of the leading causes of death in the United States).
  • Infertility in women of childbearing age.
  • Low birth-weight baby, delivering early, or stillbirth for women who quit smoking during pregnancy.

Other Benefits:

Younger looking skin
Smoking is harmful to your skin and makes you look older. By quitting you can help to maintain a healthy, youthful, glow.

A happier date
No smoking equals fresher breath and no more tobacco smell on clothes, and hair. FYI, a previous campus study revealed that 82% of WSU students prefer to date someone who does not smoke.

A brighter smile
Tobacco stains your teeth. Tobacco use can cause disease and tooth loss. Keep a healthier, brighter smile by discontinuting all tobacco products.

More money in your pocket
The average smoker can save almost $1500 per year by quitting, and heavy smokers would save even more. Just think of what you could do with an extra $125/month!

Increased sex drive
Nicotine causes the constriction of blood vessels, limiting the flow of blood to the penis. Men who smoke are twice as likely to develop erectile dysfunction. Smoking can affect the desire and satisfaction of men even in their 20’s and 30’s.

Source: http://www.everydayhealth.com
Source: https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/cessation/quitting/index.htm