Smoking and COPD

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A breath of fresh air: The immediate benefits of quitting smoking or vaping nicotine

Quitting smoking has countless short and long-term health benefits, some of which start to impact the body almost immediately after putting down a cigarette. Just 20 minutes after quitting, heart and blood pressure begin to drop. After two weeks, circulation and lung functionality improve. After one year, the risk of coronary heart disease and heart attack is reduced. After 10 years, the risk of dying from lung cancer is 50% less compared to a current smoker.

While decades of research have provided a clear picture of how quitting smoking improves physical and mental health, research on quitting e-cigarettes is still emerging. Early studies suggest that some chemicals present in e-cigarette aerosols may increase the risk of certain illnesses such as heart disease or cancer, but additional studies on long-term health effects are needed.

Here’s what we know about the short- and long-term health effects of quitting smoking or vaping nicotine, and what resources are available to help.

Bodily function starts to improve just 20 minutes after quitting smoking

Quitting smoking has life-changing benefits, regardless of age, gender, or race. In the long-term, it reduces the risk of developing, and dying from, diseases like cancer, diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease, and more. Research has also found that smoking can interfere with the body’s natural healing process, and quitting may reduce problems associated with your body’s ability to heal wounds.

For those living with chronic conditions, quitting smoking is the first step to better health outcomes, including successful recovery after a surgery. A review and meta-analysis linked quitting at or around the time of a lung cancer diagnosis with survival, and another study found patients who quit just before surgery experienced better and faster healing. Even brief periods of abstinence from smoking can improve surgical outcomes.

Quitting smoking has short-term benefits as well. Heart rate and blood pressure start to decrease just 20 minutes after someone stops smoking, and the body’s carbon monoxide levels return to healthy levels after several days. Blood circulation also starts to improve after a few weeks, and as the lungs start to heal, coughing or shortness of breath may be reduced.

90% of survey respondents felt less stressed, anxious, or depressed after quitting vaping nicotine

While research has shown that quitting smoking benefits mental health, the relationship between vaping nicotine and mental health is still being studied. Some research indicates that the relationship between cigarette smoking and depressive symptoms in young people may also be present for e-cigarettes.

In addition, in a Truth Initiative survey, 90% of respondents who quit e-cigarettes said they felt less stressed, anxious, or depressed, and nearly half (47%) of people in the survey reported feeling more in control after quitting vaping.

Quitting e-cigarettes may also reduce the risk of certain health conditions, but more research is needed. Some chemicals present in e-cigarette aerosols, such as formaldehyde and acrolein, can cause DNA damage and mutagenesis that can lead to cancer, and long-term exposure to e-cigarette aerosols could increase the risk of cancer and adverse reproductive outcomes. When evaluating the risks of e-cigarette use, it is important to note that exposure to harmful chemicals inhaled by e-cigarette users can vary greatly depending on e-cigarette device characteristics (voltage, flavor, nicotine) and how the device is used.

Resources are available for those looking to quit

For those wanting to quit smoking, vaping e-cigarettes, or using other tobacco products, there are resources to help.

Teens and young adults can text “DITCHVAPE” to 88709 and get immediate help.

A first-of-its-kind, free and anonymous text messaging program from truth designed to help young people quit vaping has become a resource for nearly 750,000 young people. The program incorporates messages from others in the same age group who have attempted to or successfully quit vaping nicotine. A randomized clinical trial found that young adults ages 18-24 who used the program had nearly 40% higher odds of quitting compared to a control group. A second clinical trial proved that the program is not only successful in helping young people quit vaping nicotine, but also in ensuring that they don’t later use combustible tobacco products in place of e-cigarettes.

By texting DITCHVAPE to 88709, you consent to recurring messages from Truth Initiative to help you quit vaping, and agree to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy. Text STOP to opt-out. Text HELP for info. Msg and Data Rates May Apply.

People of all ages can quit with EX Program

Tobacco users of any age can access resources about quitting smoking, vaping nicotine, or any tobacco product with EX Program. EX Program combines the scientific leadership in digital tobacco solutions from Truth Initiative with a proven treatment model from the Mayo Clinic, providing the personalized support tobacco users need to combat the behavioral, social, and physical aspects of addiction. EX Program also incorporates the longest running online community where current quitters and former tobacco users gather to support each other. It’s a special place to get support, and research shows that people who follow the EX quit plan have up to four times higher odds of quitting compared to those who try to quit unassisted.

Smoking and COPD

Smoking is the leading cause of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Smoking is also a trigger for COPD flare-ups. Smoking damages the air sacs, airways, and the lining of your lungs. Injured lungs have trouble moving enough air in and out, so it may be hard to breathe.

For years, you’ve enjoyed relaxing with a cigarette in your hand, and looked forward to your cigarette breaks at work, but now, all of that smoking has caught up with you. You’re coughing, wheezing, often out of breath. Could you have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease? Let’s talk about chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, for short. COPD is a lung disease that’s usually caused by smoking, although some people who smoke for years never get the condition, while a few get COPD even if they’ve never lit up. Most people with COPD have a combination of a cough that just won’t go away, called chronic bronchitis, and lung damage, called emphysema. The symptoms of COPD can sneak up on you slowly. Over time, you’ll develop a cough that lingers, day after day. You’ll feel tired, and have trouble catching your breath. Only your doctor can tell for sure whether this is COPD. To test for it, you’ll need to breathe or blow into a machine as hard as you can, and hold that breath, as long as you can, in a test called spirometry. You may also need to have a blood test to determine how much oxygen and carbon dioxide is in your blood. If you have COPD, the ways things stand now, you’ll have it for life, as there is no cure for this disease. However, there are ways to control the condition and help you breathe more easily. The first thing you do, absolutely need to do, is stop smoking, which will help slow down the damage to your lungs. A few medicines can help relieve COPD symptoms. You may breathe in a bronchodilator medicine through an inhaler to open up your airways, or take steroids to bring down the swelling in your lungs. If you’re having real trouble breathing though, call your local emergency services number. You may need to visit the hospital for oxygen or breathing assistance. You may also need to take antibiotics during flare-ups, because getting an infection can make your COPD worse. Though it may be hard to exercise when you’re feeling out of breath, staying active will help keep your muscles strong. Your doctor can teach you how to breathe in a different way so that you can exercise with COPD. You can help avoid the shortness of breath, the coughing, and the wheezing of COPD by butting out, kicking your cigarette habit as soon as possible. Not smoking is the absolute best way to prevent COPD. Ask your doctor about programs and medicines that may make it easier for you to quit.

Information

Things that make COPD symptoms worse are called triggers. Knowing what your triggers are and how to avoid them can help you feel better. Smoking is a trigger for many people who have COPD. Smoking can cause an exacerbation, or flare-up, of your symptoms. You do not have to be a smoker for smoking to cause harm. Exposure to someone else’s smoking (called secondhand smoke) is also a trigger for COPD flare-ups. Smoking damages your lungs. When you have COPD and you smoke, your lungs will get damaged more rapidly than if you were to stop smoking.

You probably know by now that smoking damages your lungs, raising your risk for bronchitis, emphysema, and lung cancer. And, you’re probably well aware that lighting up also puts you at risk for many different types of cancers, as well as eye disease like cataracts and premature wrinkles, you know why you shouldn’t smoke, it’s just the quitting part you can’t seem to get past. Let’s talk about some helpful tips to help you quit smoking, for good this time. It’s a familiar story, one that plays out over and over again among smokers. You vow to quit, and you have every intention of doing it, and then the cravings hit. And you can’t think about anything but having a cigarette. You get irritable, and you start putting on weight. You think, Just one cigarette wouldn’t hurt, would it? And then, before you know it, you’re smoking again. Most smokers have tried to quit, and failed, several times. Even if you’ve failed before, you can still succeed at quitting. Many people have. You just need to find the technique that works for you. So, here are a few tips that can help. First, set a quit date. Write it down on your calendar and tell a few friends, so you’ll be too embarrassed to back out. Before your quit date, throw out every cigarette in your house, car, and office. Also toss every ashtray, lighter, and anything else you need to smoke. Wash your clothes and clean your furniture so you won’t have that smoky smell hanging around your house. Next, call your doctor. Ask about smoking cessation programs in your area. Also learn about tools that can help you quit, like medicines that reduce the urge to smoke, and nicotine replacement gums, lozenges, patches, and sprays. And then, plan what you’ll do instead of smoking. If you smoke with your morning cup of coffee, drink tea or go for a walk instead. If you need a cigarette to keep your mouth busy, try chewing sugarless gum or nibble on a carrot stick. Stick to places where smoking isn’t allowed, like smoke-free restaurants. And finally, reward yourself for not smoking. Put all that money that you would have spent on cigarettes into a jar. And once you’ve collected enough money, use it to take a trip or buy something you’ve wanted for a long time. Don’t get discouraged. Quitting smoking isn’t easy. If it were, everyone would have done it by now. Be persistent, reward yourself for the progress you’ve made, and keep at it until you finally conquer the urge to smoke.

Quit Smoking

• Medicines
• Nicotine replacement therapy
• Support groups, counseling, or stop-smoking classes in person or online

It is not easy, but anyone can quit. Newer medicines and programs can be very helpful.

List the reasons you want to quit. Then set a quit date. You may need to try quitting more than once. And that’s OK. Keep trying if you do not succeed at first. The more times you try to quit, the more likely you are to be successful.

Avoid Secondhand Smoke

Secondhand smoke may trigger COPD flare-ups and cause more damage to your lungs. So you need to take steps to avoid secondhand smoke.

• Make your home and car smoke-free zones. Tell others you are with to follow this rule. Take ashtrays out of your home.
• Choose smoke-free restaurants, bars, and workplaces (if possible).
• Avoid public places that allow smoking.

Setting these rules can:

• Reduce the amount of secondhand smoke you and your family breathe in
• Help you quit smoking and stay smoke-free

If there are smokers at your workplace, ask someone about policies regarding if and where smoking is allowed. Tips to help with secondhand smoke at work are:

• Make sure there are proper containers for smokers to throw away their cigarette butts and matches.
• Ask coworkers who smoke to keep their coats away from work areas.
• Use a fan and keep windows open, if possible.
• Use an alternative exit to avoid smokers outside the building.

References

Criner GJ, Bourbeau J, Diekemper RL, et al. Prevention of acute exacerbations of COPD: American College of Chest Physicians and Canadian Thoracic Society guideline. Chest. 2015;147(4):894-942. PMID: 25321320

Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) website. Global strategy for the diagnosis, management, and prevention of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: 2023 report.

. Accessed October 26, 2023.

Han MK, Lazarus SC. COPD: clinical diagnosis and management. In: Broaddus VC, King TE, Ernst JD, et al, eds. Murray and Nadel’s Textbook of Respiratory Medicine. 7th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2022:chap 64.

Rochester CL, Nici L. Pulmonary rehabilitation. In: Broaddus VC, King TE, Ernst JD, et al, eds. Murray and Nadel’s Textbook of Respiratory Medicine. 7th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2022:chap 139.

Version Info

Last reviewed on: 10/13/2023

Reviewed by: Linda J. Vorvick, MD, Clinical Professor, Department of Family Medicine, UW Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.