"Hurry up and quit smoking for me! Your father and I have quit, and you still smoke! Do you really want to follow in my footsteps?" 73-year-old Uncle Chen, two years ago, was found to have a decline in lung function because of frequent chest tightness, and learned from the doctor that this change has a lot to do with smoking, although his lungs are not cancerous, but due to the decline in lung function, the quality of life may also decline.

During the past two years, not only did he force himself to quit smoking completely, but he also knocked his son who smoked from time to time.

However, then again, how can a long-term smoker be so easily persuaded? Uncle Chen thought that his son would not listen to what he said, and his son would always listen to what an expert said, so Uncle Chen began to watch health-related programs extensively, and the more Uncle Chen watched, the more surprised he became! Will smoking reduce life expectancy? The cigarettes he bought at a large price before were urging his life?

How many years does smoking reduce life? Reminder: Quitting smoking before this age can save your life

Smoking seems to have become a very common phenomenon in today's society, especially for many young people, it seems to have become a way for them to release their inner stress.

According to the latest survey released by the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2023 alone, nearly 8 million people in the world will die from a series of diseases such as lung cancer and cardiovascular diseases caused by smoking, and nearly 1.3 million people will die from diseases caused by secondhand smoke pollution.

So, in the final analysis, what people want to know more is how many years of life will be lost by smoking? Some people are curious, I have been smoking for more than ten years or even decades, is it still useful to quit smoking now?

A scholar in the New England Journal of Medicine has given the answer: compared with people who have never smoked, in people aged 40~79 years old, the life expectancy of smoking women may be shortened by about 12 years, and the life expectancy of smoking men may be shortened by about 13 years.

However, it is worth noting that stopping smoking can significantly increase life regardless of age. Of course, the sooner you quit smoking, the better the effect and the less harm to the body.

The researchers collected and analysed the smoking status of 1.48 million adult volunteers and found that:

Quitting smoking before the age of 40, and in the third year of quitting, the overall mortality rate can even return to the level of those who have never smoked;

Smokers aged 40~49 years who quit smoking ≥for 10 years have a 99% and 96% reduction in risk for women and men respectively, and the additional risk of death can almost be ignored;

Smokers aged 50~59 years who quit smoking ≥for 10 years were slightly less effective than smokers aged 40~49 years, and the additional risk of death was reduced by 95% and 92% for women and men, respectively.

In addition, the researchers also observed that even quitting smoking for ≤ 3 years reduced the risk of additional mortality to some extent.

All in all, it is urgent to quit smoking, because from the age of 40, the function of our body organs will decline to varying degrees, whether it is the digestive system or the respiratory system, their self-repair ability will be reduced.

Of course, anyone who has ever quit smoking knows that quitting smoking is not an easy task and requires strong willpower and determination. If you've ever failed to quit smoking, here are some scientific ways to quit smoking.

Do you need these 4 scientific ways to quit smoking!

1. Attention shifting

When faced with things that are often repeated in life, the brain will unconsciously turn this series of behaviors into our natural "habitual" actions. For many people, smoking is the same as the existence of "habitual" actions, such as when the pressure is high, they will unconsciously pick up a cigarette and put it to their mouths, and in a boring state, they may also pick up a cigarette casually, and over time, smoking seems to have become a "habit" for some people.

So for this part of the population, attention diversion is the preferred way to quit bad habits.

We can get "busy" by contacting nature, communicating with family and friends, and even eating fruit and drinking water, which can help us divert our subconscious attention, and if we persist for a month or so, we may be able to find surprises.

2. Will and determination

Strong will and determination also play an extremely important role in the process of quitting smoking, and it is not often joked in life that "those who can really quit smoking are ruthless".

Yes, what you have to do is to be ruthless with yourself, let the super high willpower defeat the desire to "smoke" in your heart, and resolutely resist relapse. Or you can try to throw away all the lighters and tobacco at home, so that you can "see out of sight and don't think about it", and keep a clear head at all times. If you can stick to it for a month without touching a cigarette, that's already an initial success.

3. Psychological intervention

For friends who have repeatedly failed to quit smoking, actively join a smoking cessation group and seek help from a counselor.

Because difficulties and setbacks are inevitable in the process of quitting smoking, psychological intervention can help to strengthen the determination to quit smoking to a certain extent, and overcome the hesitation and ambivalence that arise in the process of quitting smoking.

4. Drug assistance

For those who are addicted to smoking, smoking cessation medication can be used as an auxiliary treatment under the guidance of a professional doctor.

Nicotine patches, chewing gum and some non-nicotine drugs, which are common in clinical practice, can help reduce the desire to smoke to a certain extent and further reduce withdrawal.

However, some smokers have tried for a while and have not persevered, and want to find another way, since traditional cigarettes contain a lot of harmful substances, so I use e-cigarettes instead of cigarettes, is it healthier?

E-cigarettes: a harmful health scam, 3 harmful ingredients are well known

With the rapid development of modern science and technology, e-cigarettes, as an emerging tobacco alternative, have appeared in the public's field of vision. Many people think that e-cigarettes do not have a pungent smell like traditional cigarettes, and they are sure that they bring less harm to the body, but this is not the case, and the following harmful substances are also present in e-cigarettes.

1. Nicotine

According to a large number of market research, most e-cigarette liquids on the market contain nicotine substance, which has also been warned by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that it is an extremely dangerous and addictive chemical. It will make the body's blood pressure soar, the heart beat faster, and even quietly erode our blood vessels, making them fragile and narrow, which may induce fatal diseases such as stroke and heart attack at any time.

For those young people, nicotine is like a brain poison, unknowingly destroying their developing brains, which may cause attention deficits, learning disabilities, etc.

2. Propylene glycol and glycerol

As the main ingredient in e-cigarette liquids, they release formaldehyde (carcinogens), free radicals, and other toxic compounds when heated. All of these have the potential to cause irreversible damage to our lungs and respiratory system, greatly increasing the risk of respiratory diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma. Not only that, but there are also studies that show that propylene glycol may affect the body's immune system and increase the risk of infection.

3. Flavor

Fragrances may produce acrolein, formaldehyde and other substances after combustion, which may irritate the respiratory tract and cardiovascular system, induce chronic inflammation and other tissue damage.

Summary:

Quitting smoking is a good thing for your health, not only can it help you get more back, but it will also allow your family to stay away from secondhand smoke and get some fresh air. If you're a smoker, you might want to start taking action now to quit as soon as possible.

Sources:

[1] "Quitting Smoking at Any Age Prevents Cancer", Zhang Zhitong; WANG Ge; PENG Yue; Wang Jianyi; Jian Yutong; Wang Jingjiang, 2024-03-12

[2] "Quit Smoking Early and Stay Away from Stroke", Gu Yongping; Zheng Yunhui; Hu Wenyan; Gu Yiqing, 2023-12-30

#春日生活打卡季#