Giving up smoking
Effects of not smoking
When people stop smoking, they can experience a wide range of physical and psychological effects and benefits. Sometimes these effects are well-established physiological changes - such as wheezing less or being less short of breath. People also made changes in their lives in connection with giving up smoking – such as focussing more on their health and well-being.
Haseen noticed being able to breathe more easily, being less irritable and having fewer problems with his digestion.
Haseen noticed being able to breathe more easily, being less irritable and having fewer problems with his digestion.
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Breath of fresh air
People often noticed they could breathe more easily, had a better sense of smell and taste, and felt the difference in their lung capacity when walking or playing sports. Peter started running at the same time as he gave up smoking and found his fitness improved.
Looking back Andy can see that giving up after 15 years of smoking has improved his health and lung capacity but it was not immediately apparent.
Looking back Andy can see that giving up after 15 years of smoking has improved his health and lung capacity but it was not immediately apparent.
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After giving up smoking for only a couple of weeks, Jules already felt the difference in his lung capacity. He felt good that he could say no to a cigarette.
After giving up smoking for only a couple of weeks, Jules already felt the difference in his lung capacity. He felt good that he could say no to a cigarette.
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At times I wanted a cigarette as our friends used to come into my home, you know a non smoker, or I am a non smoker and I’d be a non-smoker for the rest of my life so that’s why I don’t know I can’t remember if the hypnotist has worked or not because that phrase has stuck in my head.
Caroline didn’t feel the ‘rattling’ in her chest at night, and had a heightened sense of smell. She has noticed the smell of other people smoking much more since quitting.
Caroline didn’t feel the ‘rattling’ in her chest at night, and had a heightened sense of smell. She has noticed the smell of other people smoking much more since quitting.
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First of all when I’m laying in bed, there’s none of the rattling on my chest. I’m sure I almost used to feel my blood pressure, I presume it was really high from smoking, you lay in bed and you could almost feel your heart pounding in your ears, so all of that’s gone. When I walk my dog, I can now run [laughs]. Not sort of miles, but before hand, I mean I’d just be puffing and panting after sort of few steps, but now I can run quite a long way with the dog.
It’s, I’ve got grandchildren, so it’s quite nice. I haven’t got to worry about having a full load of mints before they come, and I can cuddle then knowing that I’m not making them smell of smoke. Which is actually quite important to me, although I didn’t realise how much I smelt until I stopped smoking, and I now smell it on other people. I can go in a room where someone who’s had a cigarette, if they go into a room and then I follow them into the room, I can still smell it, even though they smoked outside.
My husband smokes and I can, if I’m coming down the path and he’s in the back garden having a cigarette, I can actually smell the stale smell. I can smell it in the toilet [laughs] wherever he’s been in a small space, I can smell it. Which as I say I didn’t notice before. You can be walking along the road, and you know that somebody has been standing there having a cigarette a minute beforehand.
So it’s nice to know that I can have the children near me, and not worry about me smelling for them really. I can smell the shampoo on my hair still. So when I wash my hair it sort of still smells of shampoo a few days later, whereas beforehand I couldn’t smell anything.
The effects people felt when they quit smoking were often highly individual and depended on things that were happening in their lives at the time they quit.
Giving up smoking often accompanied other lifestyle changes, such as taking more exercise. Smokers sometimes felt that while they were still smoking there was not much point in making an effort to look after their health in other ways, although others tried to mitigate the damage, for example by eating healthily.
After stubbing out her last cigarette, Lisa felt a sense of freedom and relief. Later she started to do more exercise.
After stubbing out her last cigarette, Lisa felt a sense of freedom and relief. Later she started to do more exercise.
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Yeah, the relief, and when I look at, even now, twelve years later, and I’ll notice someone in the street who’s smoking and I just think, thank God I haven’t got to do that anymore. And I still feel it now. Oh. It’s amazing. I probably didn’t do much exercise, however, because, when I was a smoker, because I just thought, what’s the point. I’m a smoker, you know, that’s the worst thing I can do to my body, or one of the worst things I can do to my body. Why try and be healthier and eat healthy and do exercise when I’m a smoker. What’s the point? So it made me, it had I don’t know, it had this ripple effect, it made me make bad choices in other areas of my life, kind of. You know, yeah.
After she gave up smoking Anna’s hangovers were less severe, and she didn’t get as many throat infections.
After she gave up smoking Anna’s hangovers were less severe, and she didn’t get as many throat infections.
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And I suppose, as I say I used to, I mean I was really, really prone to getting throat infections and tonsillitis and all that sort of thing, and I think that, I could always tell that that’s no longer such a problem if I didn’t smoke.
Angela said she felt terrible for the first six weeks after giving up smoking; she thought this might be because she was getting rid of toxins. Her sense of smell improved and she gained some unwelcome weight.
Angela said she felt terrible for the first six weeks after giving up smoking; she thought this might be because she was getting rid of toxins. Her sense of smell improved and she gained some unwelcome weight.
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What other changes have you noticed after you’d given up smoking?
You’re probably not going to like this, but I felt terrible for about six weeks. Terrible. I haven’t coughed, no. People said that you cough stuff. The cough things. Well I haven’t done anything like that. I’ve never really been, had a cough when I smoked and I haven’t done anything like that but I’ve felt terrible, as though I could sleep for ever, I couldn’t do this, I just, just generally don’t feel very well. But I’m just coming out of that now where I feel a bit better.
I don’t know people have said that its, all toxins, all the badness coming of you and things like that, but I haven’t felt very well. It’s not you’ve stopped smoking you feel great. Because you don’t. I’m only just starting and that’s like four months. Three months, four months, I can’t remember. Starting to feel all right.
A few people had not yet noticed any particular positive effects since stopping. Angela had put on some weight at the same time as giving up smoking, so believed that may have made her feel out of breath. However she noticed that she could now smell her perfume. Bethan felt more stressed but didn’t know if this was because she had quit smoking or because her job was difficult. Khan thought that, although he felt stronger, he was also more irritable and quick-tempered.
(Also see ‘Life events and their effect on people’s motivation to stop smoking’ and ‘Help from pharmacists, GPs and Nicotine Replacement Therapies’).
Weight gain
It is not uncommon for people to gain some weight when they first give up smoking and we talked to people who had certainly noticed this, although the reason was not always clear. Munir, for example, said that since his food now tasted better he was eating more.
After quitting smoking Keith put on just over a stone, but his lungs felt better.
After quitting smoking Keith put on just over a stone, but his lungs felt better.
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And I mean that was also tied in with other things. I had knee problems so I couldn’t get about as much. I was more sedentary anyway and so I think the two connected but the knee is getting better now, so I can move around more at the same time that I’m doing a bit more exercise and eating less I suppose. But feeling much better for it, and my lungs are clearer. I don’t get that sort of claggy feeling in the morning which was very disgusting.
Bethan has given up twice and both times she gained weight. She wonders whether her hay fever and Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are also affected by smoking.
Bethan has given up twice and both times she gained weight. She wonders whether her hay fever and Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are also affected by smoking.
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But that doesn’t bother me the weight. I mean yes, it does. But you know, because I think oh gosh I’ve put all this weight on. But I haven’t actually, my clothes still fit me, I think it’s just me thinking that I’m putting all this weight on. And of course, because of the summer and the weather, I haven’t done much exercise [laughs] so that hasn’t helped.
And I it’s funny, because after giving up smoking I found that I suffered with hay fever, which I’ve never suffer with hay fever in my life before, and then I’ve been diagnosed with IBS and I’m thinking, oh good God, since I’ve given up smoking I’m getting all these sort of, you know, illnesses. And I’m thinking, I did have a little think, is it worth it. Should I go back smoking? I thought no don’t be silly.
Chris has put on over a stone in weight after quitting. She found she snacked a bit more after quitting but thought that didn’t account for all the weight she gained.
Chris has put on over a stone in weight after quitting. She found she snacked a bit more after quitting but thought that didn’t account for all the weight she gained.
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I think it’s, I don’t know. I don’t know whether it’s something to do with something to happens to your body when you stop smoking, that makes you put that weight on, I don’t know. But it did. It did make me put weight on.
Some of the people that I’ve spoken to have experienced exactly the same thing and said that they sort of replaced food, you know, replaced smoking with food, so that when they reached for a cigarette they’d reach for a snack instead, to sort of keep their hands busy?
Yes. I do, I must admit I do snack. Before I stopped smoking I’d have one meal a day. Now that really hasn’t changed because that’s the way we’ve always been. We have it at about 7 o’clock at night. But now I’m not smoking I do tend to…. I’ve got the chewing gum but it’s sugar free. I don’t, I’ve cut the sugar right out completely because of my weight, but I do have a bag of crisps in the day, may be two bags of crisps. I don’t eat many biscuits or sweet things. But I do buy mints when I’m walking the dog, I take a handful of mints out with me. And I can’t see, you know, that they would put that much weight on. You know, and then I have a meal at night. But even that meal at night, if, I still can’t eat it all, and I don’t have a large meal, it’s just a small meal. I go, “Oh take some off, I can’t eat all that.” You know. And I, I you know, very rare I finish a meal. I don’t know. I don’t know whether it’s something in your body decides to work when you’re not smoking or stop work when you’re not smoking. I don’t know. Because for some unknown reason I just piled the weight on, and you know, and I feel fat, you know. I go out with my daughter you know, and she’ll say, “Oh that looks nice Mum.” And I go, “Yes, it’s a fat 14.” She goes “oh, Mum? You’re not fat.” I said, “Yes, but I’m not thin either. You know, I’m going to buy bigger clothes and I don’t like it.” And she says, “No but you look well.” And even the doctors she said, I said, “I’m a bit worried about the weight.” She said, “I tell you what Chris.” She said, “You’re looking good. I don’t know what you’re worried about.” I was like, “Well I just know I’m getting fat. And that’s it. End of.”
But not everyone gains weight when they stop smoking. For example, Blodwen, Sarah and Laura said they didn’t put on any weight on at all. Laura started going to the gym when she gave up and her body shape changed for the better. Lisa said that she actually lost weight when she stopped smoking – partly because it gave her the confidence and motivation to look after herself better and eat better food.
Sarah worried about putting on weight, and this initially put her off trying to stop smoking, but in the end she didn’t gain any weight.
Sarah worried about putting on weight, and this initially put her off trying to stop smoking, but in the end she didn’t gain any weight.
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Honestly none, none. I’ve not gained any weight. I realise that I probably am very aware of that. But, you know, the assumption. …it was funny actually. The I went to a, I went to a health promotion event, and there was a Quitters stand there. And a lady came up to me and she said, I think I’d just been out for a cigarette. This was some months ago when I… And she said, oh she gave me one of the things. She said, “Let me give you one of these. Do you want to explore quitting?” And I said, “Well, actually yes, I do.” I was kind of thinking about it at the time and she said, she said to me, “Wow, you know, there’s nothing but, there’s nothing but gains to quitting smoking. And I guess the only gain that you might not want is the stone that you’re going to gain.” Hm. That was it. I wasn’t going to quit any more. That put me off for about three months. That was, yes, that didn’t help me. But... again that was an assumption that everybody’s going to gain weight when they quit smoking.
You know, I know there’s evidence to suggest that most people might, but you don’t have to, not really.
(Also see ‘Money and Smoking’ and ‘Being a non-smoker’)
Last reviewed August 2018.
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