Quit smoking in 2024: This is what happens after the last cigarette

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New Year’s resolutions are a great way to make changes in your life. The problem is that most solutions remain just that; decisions. The application often fails. Most smokers probably plan to give up this annoying habit sooner or later. Every child knows that it is not that easy. Nicotine addiction or cigarette addiction is a common addiction in this country. Almost two million Swiss people use glow sticks regularly.

Its negative effects on health are widely known. This is primarily due to nicotine, but also to other substances in cigarettes. The consequences are wide-ranging and range from hardening of the arteries to heart attacks and erectile dysfunction. How dangerous this habit is is also reflected in the number of deaths attributable to smoking: approximately 9,000 people die every year in Switzerland due to tobacco consumption. Then it’s time to quit smoking! The results of quitting smoking are not only good for your health, but can be felt very quickly.

After less than 20 minutes, quitting smoking becomes considered quite temporary. Pulse and body temperature returned to the same level as if the cigarette had never existed. After two hours, the body’s blood circulation gradually improves. Heavy smokers may already suffer from withdrawal symptoms. After eight to 12 hours, blood oxygen levels improve significantly and return to normal.

The first day is completed after 24 hours. The risk of heart attack has already dropped dramatically and the level of carbon monoxide in the blood is also approaching zero. There is much less tar and mucus in the lungs than there was the day before.

Two days later the last vestige of nicotine was gone. But this also means that withdrawal symptoms, and therefore cravings, are particularly strong at this point. Over the next few days, the nerve endings grow back and the ability to smell and taste recovers significantly again.

After just two to three weeks, all physical activities become significantly easier. Various regenerative processes now take place in the body. For example, circulation and lung function have already improved significantly. And most people should be over their withdrawal symptoms by this point.

After only a month, the lungs begin to regenerate. The risk of contracting infection has already decreased. The dry cough and shortness of breath should also have decreased significantly at this point.

By the end of the first year, the risk of having a heart attack has halved.

After 5 years of quitting smoking, the body thanks you. Many substances contained in cigarettes have a negative effect on blood vessels and can therefore trigger strokes. But after five years, the risk had halved, along with the risk of developing mouth, esophagus or bladder cancer.

Cancer is one of the dangers often faced by smokers. The most dangerous of these is undoubtedly lung cancer. Smoking is responsible for nine out of 10 lung cancer deaths. After quitting smoking for 10 years, the risk of lung cancer decreased by 50 percent. The risk of having a stroke is now the same as a non-smoker.

And anyone who manages to stay smoke-free for 15 years has the same risk of heart disease as a non-smoker.

Source : Blick