NCI Health Information Tip Sheet for Writers:
Quitting Cigarette Smoking
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TOPIC: Quitting Cigarette Smoking
WHAT'S THE PROBLEM?
Cigarette smoking, the most common form of tobacco use, causes the majority of preventable death and disease in the United States each year. About 46 million people in the U.S.-or 23% of the population-currently smoke. The rates are slightly higher for men than women and for high schools students than other age groups. Smoking accounts for nearly one-third of all cancer deaths in the U.S. each year, including 87% of lung cancer deaths-the most common cause of cancer death. In addition, smoking is responsible for most cancers of the larynx, oral cavity, esophagus, and bladder. Cigarette smoking also causes heart disease and stroke.
WHO IS AT RISK?
Anyone who smokes is at greater risk for several diseases, but poor and underserved
populations often have higher smoking rates. Also, people struggling with additional
health problems-such as alcoholism, drug abuse, schizophrenia, and other mental
disorders-are disproportionately smokers.
The health risks of smoking apply not only to the smokers themselves, but also
to those around them. Secondhand smoke has been identified as a cancer-causing
substance by the U.S. Federal government. Exposure to secondhand smoke significantly
increases a person's risk of developing a smoking-related disease and is known
to cause an estimated 3,000 deaths from lung cancer in nonsmokers each year.
A pregnant woman who smokes increases the chance that her baby will be born
at a low birth-weight, and children who are exposed to secondhand smoke have
an increased risk of developing respiratory problems such as asthma.
CAN IT BE PREVENTED?
Yes, disease and death due to cigarette smoking is best prevented by never starting to smoke and by quitting smoking. In fact, the health benefits of quitting are immediate and substantial. Within just a few days of quitting, a person's sense of taste and smell return, and breathing becomes easier. Blood pressure, which becomes elevated while smoking, begins to return to normal. There are also important long-term benefits. Smokers who quit live longer than those who continue to smoke, and the earlier they quit, the greater the health benefit. Research has shown that people who stop smoking before the age of 35 reduce their risk of developing a tobacco-related disease by 90%, but older smokers can also benefit greatly from quitting. Even smokers who quit after being diagnosed with a smoking-related illness reduce their risk of medical complications and of dying from a tobacco-related disease.
There are increasingly better methods to help people quit smoking. There is also a growing number of policies designed to limit exposure to secondhand smoke in public places. Almost 50% of people in the U.S. who have ever smoked have now successfully quit, and a large majority of current smokers in the U.S. (around 70%) express the desire to quit smoking.
While quitting smoking is undoubtedly difficult, there are several approaches that can increase a smoker's chance of success.
- One-on-one or group counseling can help people quit by providing expert and peer support throughout the quitting process.
- Telephone-based counseling can also be effective at helping smokers quit. When a person calls a "helpline" or "quitline," they receive immediate assistance from an individual that has been trained as a smoking cessation counselor.
- Medications can help alleviate the physical symptoms of withdrawal. Many medications are available over the counter, but it is recommended that a person see a health care provider before starting to use one. Combining medication with counseling increases a person's chance of kicking the habit. One common form of medication is Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT). These products deliver nicotine to the smoker without the health consequences of exposure to the approximately 4,000 chemicals and 60 carcinogens found in tobacco smoke. NRT products include the nicotine patch, chewing gum, inhaler, nasal spray and lozenge. There is also an oral non-nicotine medication, buproprion (brand name, Zyban).
BOTTOM LINE
- Tobacco use continues to be one of the greatest public health challenges in this country and worldwide.
- Smoking is a complex behavior that often requires a complex solution. But smokers can, and do, quit smoking; and there are several effective strategies to help them.
- Smoking not only affects the health of the person who smokes but can also endanger the health of family and friends who are regularly exposed to smoke.
- The health benefits of quitting are immediate and substantial no matter how long a person has smoked.
CASE EXAMPLE(S)
- Michael, a smoker of 25 years, wants to stop smoking but his depression makes it even harder to quit. He is emotionally unstable and often feels suicidal. One week, he has an especially tough time and starts to give up since he believes that smoking is the least of his concerns. His family encourages him not to give up, and they convince him that quitting smoking will help him take charge of his life and take care of himself.
- After a severe attack, 8-year-old Christopher is diagnosed with asthma. While in the hospital, Christopher's doctor asks his mother if she smokes and explains that secondhand smoke can cause asthma. Ashamed, Christopher's mother denies that she smokes. Seeing his mother lie, Christopher becomes confused and upset with his mother. The mother soon realizes the effect that her smoking and her lying have on her son, and she commits to stop smoking.
- Nadia, now 56, left her family and emigrated to the U.S. as a teenager. While few women smoked in the area she came from, Nadia quickly embraced "American" culture and took up smoking. This was just one of the many things about Nadia's new life that angered and alienated her family. (She also worked at a bar and lived with her boyfriend, unmarried.) When Nadia is diagnosed with advanced stage lung cancer, she resists telling her family. She is worried that they will blame her for the disease and attribute it to her "immoral" lifestyle. As her condition deteriorates, she confides in her sister, who supports her through her final days.
- Tina, a 28-year-old woman who is eager to settle down and start a family, meets a guy who seems perfect. He's kind, smart, hardworking, and interested in a long-term relationship. But there's a catch -- he smokes. She asks him if he would be willing to quit, but he's resistant. While she thinks that he would otherwise make a wonderful husband and father, she fears that he would be a bad role model for their children. She decides to end the relationship.
MORE INFORMATION
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