When smokers quit, within twenty minutes of smoking that last cigarette the body begins a series of changes!
At 20 minutes after quitting:
- Blood pressure decreases
- Pulse rate drops
- Body temperature of hands and feet increases
At 8 hours:
- Carbon monoxide level in blood drops to normal
- Oxygen level in blood increases to normal
At 24 hours:
- Chance of a heart attack decreases
At 48 hours:
- Nerve endings start regrowing
- Ability to smell and taste is enhanced
- Shortness of breath decreases
At 2 weeks to 3 months:
- Circulation improves
- Walking becomes easier
- Lung function increases
1 to 9 months:
- Coughing, sinus congestion, fatigue, shortness of breath decreases even more
1 year:
- Excess risk of coronary heart disease is decreased to half that of a smoker
At 5 years:
- From 5 to 15 years after quitting, stroke risk is reduced to that of people who have never smoked
At 10 years:
- Risk of lung cancer drops to as little as one-half that of continuing smokers
- Risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, kidney, and pancreas decreases
- Risk of ulcer decreases
At 15 years:
- Risk of coronary heart disease is now similar to that of people who have never smoked
- Risk of death returns to nearly the level of people who have never smoked