On the eve of World Anti-Smoking Day, WDay.ru invited readers to ask their questions about this bad habit. And he asked the well-known doctor, head of the prevention department of the Russian Cancer Research Center of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, doctor of medical sciences, expert of the Nicorette brand, Vladimir Levshin, to answer them. Everything you wanted to know about smoking, health and beauty, read now!
Artistka: I quit smoking 2 years ago and I’m very happy! But, tell me, when a person quits smoking, how long does it take for the body to completely cleanse itself of nicotine? And can this process be accelerated?
– I sincerely congratulate you on this! There are already positive changes in your body! The process of cleansing the body of tobacco toxins lasts from three months to three years, depending on the smoking experience. There is no need to specially speed up this process. The only recommendation is to drink plenty of water and eat more vegetables, fruits and herbs for the first months. In addition, in order to speed up bringing the body back to normal, it is best to adhere to a healthy lifestyle, proper diet, and regularly exercise the body.
OhMadonna: I want to be a mom in 2-3 years. But now I smoke and I like it. Please do not write that it is better to quit now, I know that it is easy to say, difficult to do … yes, maybe I have weak willpower. How long after giving up cigarettes will the body become ideally clean for such a complex process as pregnancy?
– It is optimal to quit smoking before conception, but also mandatory as soon as you find out that you are pregnant. The process of cleansing the body lasts from three months to three years, depending on the smoking experience.
The more you have been smoking, the more dangerous its consequences and the more difficult it is to quit, the longer the process of cleansing the body of tobacco toxins takes. Therefore, if you are planning a pregnancy in the future, it is better to quit right now.
Read more: Why is the combination of smoking and contraceptive drugs dangerous?
Smoking mothers are three times more likely to die suddenly.
Princess-Leia: I recently learned that if a woman smokes (smoked before pregnancy), then the placenta is damaged during pregnancy. Is it true? And how is smoking harmful to women’s health?
– If a woman smokes during pregnancy, then her fetus receives tobacco toxins in almost the same doses as herself. This increases the risk of normal fetal development. Therefore, pregnant smokers are more likely to have miscarriages or reduced fetal weight.
In general, smoking and women’s health is a very exciting topic for the entire medical community. Indeed, in women, tobacco dependence often develops faster and with fewer cigarettes than in men. As a result of chronic tobacco intoxication, the elasticity of the skin is disturbed, it “grows old” faster.
Smoking and contraceptive drugs is a dangerous combination! A smoker who takes contraceptive pills greatly increases the risk of heart attack and stroke. In addition, certain tobacco compounds can neutralize the contraceptive effect of contraceptives to one degree or another and thereby increase the risk of unwanted pregnancy. Smoking during pregnancy triples the risk of miscarriage and doubles the risk of ectopic pregnancy. Mothers who smoke are more likely to have premature babies.
On average, the child of a smoker mother weighs 200 grams less.
The likelihood of sudden death of babies among smoking mothers is three times higher, their milk is less by 25%. Therefore, the sooner a smoking woman gives up this addiction, the better for herself and for her future children.
Read next: The health risks of secondhand smoke
A smoker, after quitting smoking, exhales tobacco toxins into the environment in the so-called invisible fraction of tobacco smoke for a few more minutes.
Amorous: I am a passive smoker. Itself, no, no, but my husband smokes constantly. He leaves to smoke in another room, but I still feel the smoke. How seriously will his addiction affect the health of the unborn child, if he still does not quit smoking?
– Passive or “forced” smoking can also cause significant harm to the health of non-smokers. The smoker absorbs only 20-25% of tobacco toxins, 50-60% hangs in the air of the premises where they are located. Passive smokers usually consume less tobacco toxins than smokers themselves, but their bodies, especially in children, may be more sensitive to tobacco intoxication. By the way, a smoker, after quitting smoking, exhales tobacco toxins into the environment in the so-called invisible fraction of tobacco smoke for a few more minutes. About 3 cases of lung cancer caused by secondhand smoke are diagnosed in the United States every year!
Vasilyeva: My husband quit smoking 4 years ago. And every year he smokes one or two cigarettes. Tell me, how justified is this way to “quit” smoking? What health problems could arise if he starts up again?
– I congratulate you and your husband on the victory! Unfortunately, very often, if you do not stop smoking completely, a person at any time can “break out” and smoke again. Therefore, I highly recommend that your husband give up cigarettes completely in order to minimize the likelihood of smoking relapse, especially since when he smokes 1-2 cigarettes a year (if this is really the case), it costs him nothing to give up these rare cigarettes. Returning to smoking is fraught with serious deterioration in health, regardless of age and general fitness.
Read more: Why in many developed countries it is forbidden to write on cigarette packs that they are “light”
Only a complete cessation of smoking stimulates the process of cleansing the body.
Theonlybeautiful: My boyfriend smoked all his life, then quit for a year. And now he lit a cigarette again. Moreover, he is quite aware of all the “delights” of smoking. But all persuasion, even in the form of funny jokes, does not work on him. How can you help him quit again so that he at least listens? Maybe make him think about how bad it is for me – a girl who has never smoked in her life?
– It is very commendable that you care about the health of your young man! You are right, sometimes people quit smoking not because they do not want to harm their health, but for the sake of their loved ones. Invite him to think – you, being next to him, are poisoned by cigarette smoke every day! Maybe he will be influenced by the well-known thesis that “kissing a smoking person is the same as licking an ashtray.”
Darkviziter: Tell me if the strength of cigarettes affects their harmfulness. That is, are light and strong cigarettes equally harmful? And is there a difference between smoking a pack a day or 5-7 pieces? Or even 5 cigarettes a day is a lot?
– The so-called “light” cigarettes are nothing more than a gimmick of tobacco companies. The lower nicotine content makes a person instinctively inhale deeper and smoke more. Therefore, we can say with absolute certainty that both “light” and heavier cigarettes do the same harm to health.
Therefore, in many developed countries it is legally prohibited to write on cigarette packs that they are “light”.If you used to smoke 20 cigarettes, and now you smoke 5 cigarettes, this is certainly better, you add less toxins to the body. But everything accumulated earlier remains in the body, only a complete cessation of smoking stimulates the process of cleansing the body. In addition, the continuation of smoking, albeit in smaller doses, always preserves the likelihood of a return to the previous smoking intensity.
Read next: How nicotine replacement patches can help you quit smoking
By delivering a minimal dose of pure therapeutic nicotine to the smoker’s blood, the patches relieve “withdrawal symptoms” (irritability, depression, irresistible craving for smoking, and so on).
LadyKrasotka: They say that if a person smokes for many years, then he should not quit smoking, that such stress can be even more harmful than smoking itself. Is it true? My mom has been smoking for 30 years. I would really like her to quit.
– If a person has been smoking for 30 years, it is simply more difficult for him to quit smoking than for a smoker with a smoking experience of 5 years, they have different degrees of tobacco dependence. But, of course, it is advisable to quit smoking for everyone, regardless of smoking experience, since you get rid of chronic intoxication of the body, which only gets worse over time and leads to more and more serious health consequences. Therefore, it is better to quit smoking earlier than later, but better later than never.
Annyshka1983: Could you please tell me if the Nicorette patches are really effective and do they harm your health even more than cigarettes?
– The nicotine replacement patch is designed so that the purified nicotine contained in it gradually enters the bloodstream through the skin and is quickly delivered to the nicotine receptors.
The principle of nicotine replacement therapy is based on the fact that nicotine, not tobacco smoke, forms the dependence on smoking. Unlike the tobacco smoke that you inhale when you smoke a cigarette, small doses of nicotine do not harm your body. By delivering a minimal dose of pure therapeutic nicotine to the smoker’s blood, the so-called withdrawal symptoms (irritability, depression, an irresistible urge to smoke, and so on) can be removed. Then, gradually reducing the dose of therapeutic nicotine entering the bloodstream, you can quit smoking completely.
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