Reasons to Stop Smoking

What You Need to Know

1. Even though everyone knows by now that smoking is bad for you, it’s still well worth reading up on the many benefits of quitting the habit.
2. Official statistics show that smoking can be blamed for 100,000 deaths a year in the UK alone, with almost half of these due to cancer.
3. Even if it doesn’t kill you, the 4,000 chemicals found in a typical cigarette can lead to a number of serious conditions that may seriously impede your quality of life.
4. Smoking also places the health of those around you at serious risk and children in particular are particularly affected by second-hand smoke.
5. As well as health reasons, quitting smoking can also be beneficial financially.
6. Other benefits of stopping smoking include gaining more confidence and looking more attractive.
7. Meanwhile, non-smokers are also less likely to suffer from fertility issues.

For the Sake of your Health

The number one reason for quitting smoking is quite simply that it is bad for your health. Indeed, official statistics show that smoking can be blamed for 100,000 deaths a year in the UK alone, with almost half of these due to cancer. Even if it doesn’t kill you, the 4,000 chemicals found in a typical cigarette can lead to a number of serious conditions that may seriously impede your quality of life. Some of the biggest incentives for quitting is that it can;

• Lower your risk of serious illness or even premature death from cancer, heart or lung disease.
• Lower your risk of circulation problems. Many heavy smokers need limbs amputating as a direct result of their habit. Additionally, smoking can narrow blood vessels in the brain, leading to strokes and paralysis.
• Help ease adulthood asthma. By inflaming your airways, smoking can make asthma much worse, regardless of what medication you take.
• Make breathing easier and allow you to enjoy physical activities such as sport and games.

For the Sake of Others

Smoking not only jeopardises your own health, but it can also place those around you at risk. In fact, according to NHS experts, secondhand smoke contains some 4,000 toxic chemicals and is responsible for thousands of deaths each year.

Moreover, children are particularly affected by secondhand smoke since they are still developing physically.

Even if you can’t see or smell any smoke, it could still be hanging in the air. In fact, smoke and its harmful chemicals can hang around in a room more than two hours after you’ve finished a cigarette and even if you open a window, the risk fo second-hand smoke remains.

Financial Reasons

Aside from the health risks, both to yourselves and others, smoking can also seriously damage your wealth. In fact, if you’re a heavy smoker (20 a day or more), then quitting can leave you several hundred pounds a month better off – more than enough to enjoy a family holiday each summer. Indeed, according to the NHS, if you smoke 20 cigarettes a day, if you quit, you stand to be £900 better off after just six months.

Other Considerations

As well as all of the above, there are a number of additional reasons to give up smoking. These include;

More and Better Sex: Smoking is no longer regarded as ‘cool’ or attractive. Quite the opposite, the smell can drive potential partners away. So, quitting could help give your love life a boost. Furthermore, according to the NHS, since quitting smoking improves the body’s blood flow, woman may find that they become more easily aroused and enjoy more – and better – orgasms.

Whiter Teeth: Though not a serious health risk, stained and unsightly teeth is one major downside of smoking. Quitting can help you regain your winning grin.

Healthier Skin: Smoking reduces the blood supply to the skin and lowers levels of vitamin A in the body. So, quitting can make your skin glow and make you look younger.

Greater Confidence: Since you won’t be worried about the effects of your secondhand smoke or the state of your teeth, quitting smoking will no doubt give you a significant confidence boost.

Improved Taste: Smoking can serious impair your senses. So, when you quit, you’ll find you are able to taste more and even smell more, making mealtimes more enjoyable than ever.

Further Reading

• NetDoctor has also published a comprehensive list of reasons to give up smoking. Check that out here.
• Want to kick the habit? Make use of the help offered through the NHS Smoke Free initiative.
• If your attempting a lifestyle overhaul, read our guide to sticking to an exercise plan.