Smokers live that much shorter on average

Before you can successfully quit smoking, there are many hurdles – from withdrawal symptoms to weight problems to the “inner bastard”. But there are many reasons why it is still worth stopping smoking.

If you keep your fingers off the cigarette, you generally reduce the risk of various diseases. Smoking is directly responsible for around one fifth of all cancers, but heart disease, high blood pressure, strokes and chronic bronchitis can also often be traced back to smoking.

Every year, 110,000 to 140,000 people die in Germany as a result of tobacco consumption, around 40 percent of which are due to cardiovascular diseases. In addition, every year 85,000 people develop cancer as a result of smoking. Anyone who smokes or has smoked also shows a much higher risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis – an inflammation of the joints.

What does the renunciation actually do for health?

According to the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the function of the respiratory tract improves just three days after the last cigarette. After a week, blood pressure drops and with it the risk of a heart attack. After one to nine months, coughing fits, sinus congestion, and shortness of breath decrease. The lungs are gradually cleaned by breaking down phlegm. The risk of infection is reduced.

Two years after quitting smoking, a former smoker has almost the same risk of cardiovascular disease as a non-smoker. Smokers who have been smoke-free for five years have the same risk of heart attack as non-smokers. After five years, the risk of cancer in the oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus and urinary bladder also falls by half. The risk of stroke can also drop to that of a non-smoker after just two to five years.

What about the dreaded lung cancer?

Ten years after quitting, a former smoker’s risk of developing lung cancer is only half as high as if they’d continued puffing continuously. For example, someone who smoked for 40 years and put down the fag five years ago can still develop lung cancer today. According to doctors, the risk is at least no longer increasing.

How does not smoking affect lifespan?

According to DKFZ calculations, heavy smoking shortens life by an average of ten years. The German insurers come to six to seven years less lifetime. The worst case is an obese heavy smoker who drinks heavily and eats a lot of red meat – losing up to 17 years of life expectancy compared to the person with the most favorable risk profile. For a woman it is almost 14 years.

Studies show that four out of five ex-smokers gain an average of four and a half kilograms within the first year or two after quitting. The cause is a reduced metabolism and an increased calorie intake after quitting smoking.

Nicotine speeds up the metabolic processes. That is why smokers consume up to 200 kilocalories more per day than non-smokers. Nicotine also has an appetite suppressant effect. After quitting smoking, the body burns less energy, and at the same time many people turn to sweets and snacks instead of cigarettes.

What is the best way to stop smoking?

According to a report by the independent scientific organization Cochrane, smoking cessation works better with e-cigarettes than with nicotine replacement products such as patches and chewing gum. This is also due to the fact that the similarity makes it easier to say goodbye to the fags.

However, possible long-term consequences of e-cigarettes were not considered, nor was the question of whether they can act as a gateway drug, especially for young people. The Federal Center for Health Education advises against e-cigarettes and so-called tobacco heaters because consumption is associated with health risks.