Benefits of quitting smoking during the COVID-19 pandemic

November 19th is The Great American Smokeout, a perfect motivator to finally give up on those cigarettes.

If you are a smoker, you already know that quitting smoking is the best thing you can do for your health right now. You also know that quitting nicotine is easier said than done. But the plethora of health benefits of butt calcium can help serve as the motivation to do just that.

From your bones to your own DNA, your body undergoes drastic changes after you quit. Almost immediately, your lungs start trying to heal and your lung function can improve dramatically once cigarettes are gone from your life.

Although the damage is difficult to reverse, new research published in Respiratory Medicine has found that those with mild to moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) achieve normalization of decline in lung function within one year of cessation. Even for those with severe COPD, the decline rate was reduced by half after one year of not smoking.

You don’t have to wait a year to start seeing the benefits of smoking cessation. Within minutes, hours, and days of quitting, the benefits begin to pile up.

If you need more motivation to quit beyond the obvious reasons to save money, get rid of that smoker’s cough, and not smell like smoke, here’s what happens when you quit smoking and why it’s more important than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Within 24 hours

Smoking causes the blood vessels to constrict and within 24 hours of the last butt being extinguished, the constriction begins to loosen. Blood pressure, heart rate and body temperature begin to return to normal levels. Carbon monoxide levels also decrease and oxygen levels in the blood also begin to return to normal.

More importantly, the risk of heart attack begins to decrease.

Within 72 hours

Food begins to taste better when your taste buds and smell receptors heal. Damaged nerve cells also begin to heal, but the addiction cycle gets tough. This is generally the hardest time for cravings, but those cravings begin to subside as nicotine receptors in the brain start to change. Within a month, the nicotine receptors drop to a normal level.

Within a month

Within a month of quitting smoking, cravings become easier to manage and the risk of hearing loss and vision damage decreases. The teeth become whiter and the skin begins to heal from premature aging and wrinkles.

The risk of heart attack and stroke also decreases, and you may find that it is easier to climb stairs as the lungs repair. In fact, one of the first things in the body to heal are cilia, small finger-like projections in the respiratory tract. Healthy lashes help you fight colds, viruses and infections, so you may notice that you don’t get sick as often.

After a year

Your risk of coronary artery disease drops to half that of current smokers and your lung function will have reached near normal levels if you have mild to moderate COPD. The DNA damage stops and some of the DNA damage even begins to heal.

During the first year that you quit smoking, the risk of diabetes also decreases. For women, estrogen levels gradually return to normal and men reduce the chances of erectile dysfunction.

By the end of the first year, most people also find that they heal from injuries and illnesses faster thanks to normal white blood cell counts and improved blood flow.

After two years

For those who successfully quit smoking for two years, the chances of being a lifelong non-smoker increase. According to the Boston University School of Dental Medicine, 80% of people over the age of two no longer return to smoking. At about age five, the risk of stroke is the same as that of a non-smoker.

After 15 years of no smoking, the risk of stroke, lung cancer and heart disease will be roughly the same as for people who have never smoked.

COVID-19 and smoking

While the Centers for Disease Control and researchers haven’t necessarily found a direct correlation between smoking and more severe COVID cases, smoking certainly doesn’t help the situation. Imagine trying to run a 100 yard run with 20-pound sandbags attached to your back.

The CDC warns that being a current or previous cigarette smoker increases the risk of serious COVID-19 illness. Since smokers have lung problems that make them more vulnerable to diseases like bronchitis and the flu, they also run a higher risk of viral invasion.

According to the World Health Organization, an observational study of seven studies (1,726 patients) found a “statistically significant association between smoking and severity of COVID-19 outcomes among patients.”

Why take the risk? If you are a current smoker, quit now. If you don’t smoke, don’t start.

Get support

Quitting smoking is difficult, but millions of people have done it successfully. Getting support from your INTEGRIS doctors and smoking cessation programs increase your chances of kicking yourself forever.

If you are considering quitting smoking, your INTEGRIS doctor can help you get started. The Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline also provides free smoking cessation services.

The Helpline offers tips for overcoming cravings and overcoming stressors at OKhelpline.com, or you can call them at 1-800- GET OUT NOW. In addition to online tips and resources, the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline provides FREE services including SMS and email support and free patches, gums or pads. Additionally, Quit Coaches are available 24/7 to assist in creating a personalized quit plan.