Smoking is the main cause of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). COPD is the name for a collection of lung diseases including chronic bronchitis, emphysema and chronic obstructive airways disease. At least 4 out of 5 people who develop the disease are, or have been, smokers. The lining of the airways becomes inflamed and permanently damaged by smoking. This damage cannot be reversed. Around 10-25% of smokers develop COPD.
Please Contact us if you are looking for support.
Stopping smoking will also benefit your baby later in life. Children whose parents smoke are more likely to suffer from asthma and other more serious illnesses that may need hospital treatment.
The sooner you stop smoking, the better. But even if you stop in the last few weeks of your pregnancy this will benefit you and your baby.
To find out more about quitting and to get support, you can call us on 0800 246 1072 or 01865 238 036, or click here to find support in your area.
If your partner or anyone else who lives with you smokes, their smoke can affect you and the baby both before and after birth. You may also find it more difficult to stop if someone around you smokes.
Second-hand smoke can also reduce birthweight and increase the risk of cot death. Babies whose parents smoke are more likely to be admitted to hospital for bronchitis and pneumonia during the first year of life. More than 17,000 children under the age of five are admitted to hospital every year because of the effects of second-hand smoke.
Smoking is by far the most important preventable cause of cancer in the world. Smoking accounts for one in four UK cancer deaths, and nearly a fifth of all cancer cases.
Smoking causes more than four in five cases of lung cancer. Lung cancer has one of the lowest survival rates of all cancers, and is the most common cause of cancer death in the UK. Smoking also increases the risk of over a dozen other cancers. The good news is that most of these deaths are preventable, by giving up smoking.
The fact is that half of all smokers eventually die from cancer, or other smoking-related illnesses. A quarter of smokers die in middle age, between 35 and 69.
Tobacco smoke contains more than 70 different cancer causing substances. When you inhale smoke, these chemicals enter your lungs and spread around the rest of your body.
Scientists have shown that these chemicals can damage DNA and change important genes. This causes cancer by making your cells grow and multiply out of control.
Thanks to research, health campaigns and new policies, the number of smokers in the UK has halved in the last 50 years. Because of this, the number of people who die from lung cancer has also halved. Clearly, giving up smoking saves lives
Please Contact us if you are looking for support.
When you go smoke free, your appetite may increase and sense of taste may improve.
The average weight gain after quitting smoking is roughly around 3kg.
This is a normal response to the removal of nicotine from your diet.
Please Contact us if you are looking for support or worried about weight management.
Stopping smoking can make a drastic improvement to your lifestyle and health in ways you might not expect. Once you stop smoking, some of the benefits are immediate and some are longer-term
You will reduce your risk of developing illnesses, disability or death
You will reduce your risk of amputation caused by circulatory problems
You will improve the health those around you and protect your children form secondhand smoke
You will improve your fertility levels and your chance of a healthy pregnancy and baby, whether you are a man or a woman planning to have a baby
You will improve your breathing and lung capacity
Your taste buds will recover
SUCCESS STORIES20 minutes
Blood pressure and pulse rate return to normal.
24 hours
Carbon monoxide will be eliminated from the body. Lungs start to clear out mucus and other smoking debris.
72 hours
Breathing becomes easier. Bronchial tubes begin to relax and energy levels increase.
3 - 9 months
Coughs, weezing and breathing problems improve as lung function increases by up to 10%.
10 years
Risk of lung cancer falls to half that of a smoker. Risk of heart attack falls to the same as one who has never smoked.
8 hours
Nicotine and caron monoxide levels in blood reduce by half, oxygen levels return to normal.
48 hours
There is no nicotine. Ability to smell and taste is greatly improved.
2 - 12 weeks
Your circulation improves.
5 years
Risk of heart attack falls to about half compared to a person who is still smoking.
Answer the two questions below and then click “Calculate” to see how much money you could save!
How much do you pay for a 20 pack of your favourite cigarettes?
How many packets of cigarettes do you smoke each day?
Please note that the figures above are simply an indication of much you could save based on the cost of a pack of cigarettes and your daily intake.