5 Benefits of Quitting Smoking

Non-small-cell lung carcinoma (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The idea to stop smoking might seem really great, but what are you actually going to get out of the process?  For many people there are some benefits that are immediately obvious.  Of course, your clothes and house will smell a lot better, and if you have been a car smoker, your car will start to smell better as well.  However, if you dive beyond these shallow reasons, what can you really expect to gain by quitting?  The issues of money and even your health are far greater than any minor smells that cigarettes can give off.

One of the biggest benefits is the savings of money.  Consider that a one pack a day habit can easily rack up a bill of $35 a week, $150 a month and finally $1,825 in a year.  This adds up to an enormous amount that is really hard to play down.  It is important to be really honest with yourself about how much your cigarettes are costing you, if you are attempting to slash your budget, quitting smoking can go a very long way towards freeing up a lot of money.

While the money is obviously nice to save, there are huge benefits to your health as well.  For example, research tells us that as little as 20 minutes after you stop smoking you will be able to see a difference in your health.  If you consider that quitting smoking can help you reduce your risk of heart problems, stroke, high blood pressure, lung cancer, and even breathing complications you have just located a plethora of reasons why smoking really is good to avoid.  The research that tells us smoking is bad has proven that just a short period of time after quitting is able to reverse many of the harmful effects that cigarettes have caused, no matter how long you have been a smoker.

For example, if you quit smoking for a period of 5 years, you are no more at risk of a stroke than someone who has been a non-smoker for their entire life.  This is huge considering that those who smoke are considered at least twice as likely to suffer a stroke.  Additionally, if you quit for 15 years, you can enjoy the same risk of coronary heart disease as a non-smoker as well.  While it might seem strange to enjoy the risk for coronary heart disease, it is much better than actually having coronary heart disease.  Taking these small victories for your health is important since you will be able to significantly improve your quality of life.

Working to decide which benefits are the most motivation for you is not always easy.  You need to look at your lifestyle and determine what truly matters for you.  Not everyone is concerned about the health benefits, if you find yourself more concerned with the money then focus on what you can save.  If you are more determined to improve your health then focus your efforts on the health benefits that stopping smoking for good can really have for you.  Ultimately, the reason you choose to quit smoking is up to you, the way you do it will be based around your particular personality and smoking habits.  Knowing what your motivating factors are can go a long way towards boosting willpower though, which is always a helpful benefit no matter why you try to quit.

                                                                                                            - Mohammed Zahran -