How quitting smoking boosts heart health

Smoking is a major risk factor for heart disease, one of the leading causes of death in the UK. Tobacco products, such as cigarettes, contain many harmful substances, from acetone and tar to nicotine and carbon monoxide. Inhaling these can lead to ongoing complications and long-term effects on your body and your health.  

Lauren Hewitt, Registered Associate Nutritionist at Heart Research UK, explains:

“Smoking can increase your risk of many health conditions, including glaucoma, mental health, gum disease, cancer, lung damage, chronic lung conditions, psoriasis, infertility, osteoporosis, and issues with blood clotting. It has also been found to increase inflammation and negatively impact the immune system, making you more susceptible to infection. 

Smoking is associated with decreased food intake and lower body weight. This is due to the nicotine inhaled with smoking being an appetite suppressant, leaving those who smoke without the desire to eat food regularly. The smoking habit is also a behavioural alternative to eating for many and is used as a weight control method.”

What impact does smoking have on your heart?  

Smoking can damage your heart and blood vessels, increasing your risk of a heart attack. The chemicals in cigarettes form a sticky coating on the walls of your arteries, which allows any fatty material passing through to get stuck. This, in time, can clog your arteries, causing atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease. Smoking can also increase your risk of blood clots and reduce the amount of oxygen getting around your body.

“When you smoke a cigarette, your blood pressure increases immediately and remains elevated for 15 to 30 minutes,” says Lauren. “Cigarettes trigger your sympathetic nervous system (SNS), or your fight-or-flight response, which causes a rise in heart rate and blood pressure. Smoking regularly can contribute to high blood pressure due to the build-up of fatty materials in your arteries.”

What are the benefits of stopping smoking?

The day that you stop smoking, your body begins to clear itself of the harmful toxins that you’ve been inhaling and begins the repair process. Soon after stopping, you’ll notice an improvement in your sense of taste and smell, you’ll feel more energetic, and you may start to breathe more easily. Other benefits, such as better circulation, improved lung function, and the reduction in coughing and wheezing, will also follow. You may also find that your mental health and wellbeing become better, and you feel less stressed, anxious, and depressed.

“With regards to the benefits on your heart, within six hours of stopping smoking, your heart rate and blood pressure will stabilise, and within two to twelve weeks, your blood will pump more efficiently through your heart and muscles. One year down the line, your risk of heart attacks will have halved in comparison to someone who smokes, and after 10 years, your risk of death from lung cancer will have halved in comparison to someone who smokes. 15 years on and your risk of heart attacks becomes the same as someone who has never smoked,” Lauren explains.

Four tips on how to cut down and quit smoking

Three in four smokers wish they had never picked up their first cigarette. Stopping smoking is one of the best things you can do for your health. We share Lauren’s tips on how you can stop today. 

1. Plan it

Set yourself a date within the next two weeks when you are going to stop smoking. Having this in your calendar increases your chances of quitting and holds you accountable for your actions. To make this easier for yourself, remove all of your lighters, matches, ashtrays, cigarettes, and any other reminders of smoking that you may have from your house. This is the out of sight, out of mind approach, and should help to reduce your triggers and make it easier for you to quit.  

2. Make a list

Write a list of all the reasons why you started smoking and then a list of all the reasons that you want to stop smoking. Compare the two, the reasons to stop will likely be longer and more impactful on your life and health than the reason why you started smoking. Keep this list handy or write it on your phone, as you may find it useful when you are having cravings and need some motivation.

You might also find it useful to make a list of ways to distract yourself; these could be activities that you enjoy doing or new things that you want to try. Cooking, exercise and reading are a few examples.

3. Change your habits

People often still smoke because they’ve formed a habit, and it has become part of their daily routine. Research has found that exercising helps to reduce the urge to some and can help the brain to produce anti-craving chemicals. Taking up exercise or a new hobby is a great way you can distract yourself from cravings, improve your fitness, and form a new healthy habit. Try and meet the physical activity guidelines of at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity a week.

4. Get support

Build a support network around you. Make sure that people are aware that you’re stopping smoking, so they can support you through the process, or they may want to quit with you. Having support will motivate you to keep going and get you through the tough days. Use local stop smoking services or chat to your GP if you need any help.

Try Heart Research UK’s 28-day no-smoking tracker and download it today to keep your heart healthy.