Quitting Smoking

What are the health risks of tobacco?

Quitting tobacco is one of the most important things you can do for your health. Tobacco is a leading cause of cancer and harms nearly every organ of the body.

Tobacco smoke contains many harmful chemicals, and it can harm you even if you don't smoke directly. Exposure to secondhand smoke raises the risk of cancer and other diseases. If you're pregnant, it can harm the baby.

Quitting can be difficult because smoking causes addiction to nicotine, a stimulant drug in tobacco. Nicotine addiction makes it harder to stop — but quitting can improve both the quality and length of your life.

What are the benefits of quitting?

Tobacco is the most common preventable cause of death. The more years you smoke and the more cigarettes per day, the higher your risk. Quitting reduces that risk and improves quality of life.

Some early benefits of quitting include:

• Lower heart rate and blood pressure
• Less carbon monoxide in the blood (carbon monoxide reduces the blood's ability to carry oxygen)
• Better circulation
• Less coughing and wheezing
• Return of senses of smell and taste

In the longer term, quitting adds years to your life. The risk of developing tobacco-related cancer decreases with each year you stay smoke-free.

How can I quit?

There are several ways to quit. Common methods include:

• Counselling with a doctor about your smoking habits, readiness to quit, and a specific quit date
• Quit-smoking aids — nicotine replacement therapy (patches, gum, lozenges) or prescription medicines that reduce nicotine cravings. These may not be right for you if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, a teenager, or have certain medical conditions.
• Gradual reduction — slowly cutting down the number of cigarettes per day — or stopping all at once ("cold turkey")
• Government cessation services — free tobacco quit-support exists. Ask your doctor for the current options.

A combination of counselling and cessation medicines works better than either alone.

Some people think switching to e-cigarettes can help them quit, but this has not been proven, and e-cigarettes are banned in India under the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act, 2019.

When you stop or cut back, you may have short-term effects — irritability, anxiety, mood changes, weight gain, or trouble sleeping. These are withdrawal symptoms. Your doctor can help you manage them and find what works for you.