It is no secret that smoking causes enormous damage to the whole body. Nicotine and the related harmful substances contained in tobacco smoke penetrate every organ, every cell of the body, bringing with it destruction and serious consequences.
It would therefore be naive to believe that giving up this bad habit will go unnoticed.
The problem of smoking is addressed by specialist doctors - narcologist and psychotherapist (psychologist). This is explained by the fact that when quitting smoking, a person faces the problems of physical and psychological addiction to cigarettes. If the patient is not a heavy smoker, the rehabilitation process of the body is quite easy and simple (almost imperceptible). If the patient is an experienced smoker and at the same time his daily norm was one pack, or even two per day, quitting smoking (and even abrupt quitting) can lead to a state of stress.
Let's take a closer look at what happens to a smoker's body after giving up a bad habit?
What can affect the body's recovery process?
How long and how long the process of recovery and renewal of the body will last depends entirely on the smoker himself, or rather on:
- his smoking history;
- sex;
- age;
- the presence of underlying and chronic diseases;
- the state of the immune system;
- individual characteristics of the patient's body.
For some patients the process is faster, for others it is delayed, but on average it takes about a year to "heal".
Preparing for: the unpleasant aspects of quitting
Quitting smoking can have a number of unpleasant sensations, but all are temporary and are a normal reaction of the body during the restructuring and transition to nicotine-free functioning. In medicine, this period is called withdrawal syndrome (popularly - fragile) and does not threaten the body in any way. During body rehabilitation, the following symptoms may appear (but this is not necessary, and therefore you should not listen and look for these signs in yourself):
- burning desire to smoke;
- mild dizziness;
- irritability, lack of strength to wait or tolerate anything;
- depressed mood or depressed state;
- obsessive anxiety;
- fast fatigue;
- slow heart rate;
- skin rashes (irritation, acne);
- inflammation of the oral mucosa;
- sore throat;
- runny nose;
- sleep disturbances;
- constant hunger;
- stomach cramps;
- persistent cough.
These are the most common ailments during the body's recovery period, but it is by no means necessary for all of the above symptoms (or even some of them) to appear in you.
The recovery period can also be accompanied by a decrease in immunity, and therefore, in the first two months, smokers are prone to virals and colds. And this is quite understandable, because the body adapts to the new conditions of existence, and therefore immunity cannot give viruses a worthy rejection.
Over the years of smoking, your body has become accustomed to functioning in a constant nicotine supply mode, and for the body to adapt to the new (well-forgotten old) working conditions, it takes time and more tothe longer you smoked, the longer you have to wait.
What can make the body's recovery process easier?
The body's recovery process can be slightly facilitated by filling the life with pleasant sensations and joyful events - this stimulates the production of the pleasure hormone (dopamine).
To calm the nervous system, you can take sedatives: tincture of valerian, lemongrass and ginseng, a cocktail of motherwort and chamomile decoctions. Sports (moderate physical activity - refusing the elevator and climbing stairs, lessons in the pool, walking and cycling in a pine forest or forest, hiking, outdoor games) and hobbies (some prefer to "let their heads work"). And instead of cigarettes, take seeds or nuts - this is a useful alternative to nicotine, they contain minerals and substances necessary for the body that help fight toxins.
For faster recovery of the respiratory system, try to limit contact with home and office equipment (they inhibit the cleaning process of the lungs) or purchase an air ionizer.
To maintain immunity, it is recommended to avoid drafts and walk in cold, muddy weather; replenish the lack of vitamins with fruit or take vitamin and mineral complexes. It will be useful to pay attention to the diet to restore protein balance, as well as eat more foods containing vitamin C (oranges, lemons, kiwis, grapefruits, pineapples, berries, herbs, rosehip broth, sauerkraut salad) and fiber(dried fruit, bran, vegetables). Dairy products will discourage the desire for tobacco, in addition, they will be very useful for the recovering body (especially for the cardiovascular system).
Above all, quitting smoking must be accompanied by strong motivation.
What to expect: positive changes
When you stop smoking, your internal organs and systems are the first to react.
Do not be afraid of some discomfort in the chest (this, as we have already said, is a temporary phenomenon), only the respiratory and circulatory systems begin to recover: the heart muscle and blood vessels acquire their former elasticity and begin to workat full power.
After quitting nicotine, some depression may be observed, but these are only the consequences of the nervous system being toned up and restoring its natural state: it resists stress without the help of nicotine. Shaking hands syndrome disappears shortly after.
As you know, nicotine has a negative effect on the reproductive system of men and women. By reducing sperm count and sperm vitality, nicotine can make a man sterile. Nicotine has an equally harmful effect on the female body, disrupting the reproductive cycle of the woman, as well as the possibility of normal fertilization of the egg and the intrauterine development of the baby. Smoking (especially in women) involves gene mutations and therefore affects the ability to have healthy offspring. Smokers, compared to non-smokers, have a ten times greater risk of giving birth to an unhealthy baby, as well as the fact that the risk of miscarriage is many times higher. After quitting smoking, the risk of premature birth is significantly reduced, as is the birth of a child with pathology of the respiratory tract, cardiovascular system and other ailments. For men, quitting smoking prevents premature impotence (for smokers this age is 30-40 years).
Many women worry about weight gain when they quit smoking. While smoking, nicotine dulls hunger, speeds up your metabolism and at the same time helps fight stress. There is no reason to worry if, during the period of restructuring of the organism, due attention is paid to the diet (giving up fatty foods, and also refusing or at least limiting the consumption of sweets and flour products). According to statistics, the average weight gain of those who quit smoking is about 3 kg per year, but the "horror stories" about this are nothing more than a publicity stunt of tobacco companies and cigarette companies. Those who are prone to obesity, in addition to a healthy diet, should pay attention to an active lifestyle (try walking more).
Quitting smoking will have a beneficial effect on the whole body and will manifest itself in the following ways:
- improvement of the work of all organs and systems (cardiovascular, respiratory, nervous, digestive, urogenital);
- improvement of the circulatory system and blood circulation (healthy complexion and even redness);
- easy breathing and disappearance of shortness of breath;
- improvement of smell and taste (perhaps also improvement of vision and hearing, because nicotine no longer attenuates the functioning of the auditory and optic nerves);
- increased efficiency and the emergence of a desire to be more active;
- normalization of sleep (daytime sleepiness disappears) and general tone of the body;
- improve memory, reaction, concentration;
- increased speed of thought (rapid intelligence);
- increased free time (refusing to smoke breaks);
- increased finances (which were previously wiped out by cigarette smoke).
What happens during recovery with the body by day and month?
For those interested in what happens to the body when a smoker has given up on a bad habit, we will answer: the body is recovering, and it is more or less like this (the process can happen differently for everyone).
1 day:
- the concentration of carbon monoxide in the blood decreases and the level of oxygen in the tissues increases;
- decreased appetite;
- you feel weakness;
- may be having a bad dream.
Day 2:
- Improve the functioning of the epithelium of the lungs - the amount of mucus in them decreases;
- the cells of the stomach and intestines are renewed;
- cough, itchy skin;
- frequent urination.
3rd day:
- the bronchial mucosa is restored - the flow of oxygen to the heart and brain increases;
- improves the tone of blood vessels;
- appetite increases significantly.
Day 4:
- blood flow to the brain normalizes - tinnitus and dizziness are observed;
- antidiuretic hormone is produced.
5th day:
- cough with mucus;
- healing of micro traumas of the tongue and restoration of the taste buds.
6th day:
- the work of the pancreas and gallbladder is restored;
- excessive sweating and nausea appear.
7th day:
- psychological awareness of cigarette addiction;
- cough with mucus;
- Violation of stool.
This is pretty much how the body's first week of recovery goes by, and perhaps these first few days won't be particularly noticeable. However, a month will pass and you will not only be able to feel the qualitative changes, but others will notice it too.
For months, the restore process goes like this:
- 1 month - recovery occurs at the cell level (the epithelium is renewed, the process of absorption and absorption in the intestine is normalized, depression is possible).
- 2 months - the skin is restored (the yellowness of the fingers and face disappears, dry skin disappears), the lungs are restored at the cellular level (cough can continue), fatigue during physical exertion disappears.
- 3 months - blood vessels, nervous system (minimal susceptibility to stress), increased appetite, but healthy sleep is fully restored.
- 4 months - normalization of the skin of the face (peeling passes), the production of hydrochloric acid in the stomach is normalized and the stool is normalized.
- 5 months - lung tissues continue to recover, liver cells are restored, the body's response to physical activity is normalized (however, with "marathons" you should wait for now).
- 6-8 months: the process of enriching the blood with oxygen is normalized, the liver continues to regenerate, the weight stabilizes, the taste buds and smell are restored.
- 9 months - almost full body recovery, it can be tempting to go back to smoking.
- 1 year - unrestricted physical activity; the risk of smoking-related diseases is reduced by 90%.
Be patient, because you have to pay for everything in life, and all unpleasant sensations are only temporary, but the diseases caused by smoking bring much more trouble and suffering to the body.
Good luck fighting your bad habit: smoking! We believe there is only one possible winner in this fight and you will become him!
Be healthy!