Pilbara Health

Once you have quit:

• Tomorrow morning – your heart rate and blood pressure will have begun to return to normal.
• By 12pm tomorrow – you will have almost no nicotine left in your body.
• After 3 days – you will feel and smell fresher. Your taste and smell for food will have increased.
• By 1 week – the accumulated phlegm in your lungs will have loosened. Cilia (the lungs natural cleaning system) will begin to recover.
• After 1 month – exercise and daily activities will be easier due to increased lung function.
• In 3 months – the blood flow to your head and feet will have increased.
• By 6 months – your increased immune system and lung function means you are more able to fight off unwanted illnesses.
• After 1 year – your risk of lung cancer is reduced and the risk of heart disease is almost half that of a continuing a smoker.

Tips to Help you Stay a Non-smoker

• Refuse offers of cigarettes and stand up for your decision to quit. You could respond by saying, ‘No thanks, I don’t smoke’ or ‘Please don’t offer me anymore cigarettes. I have given up smoking’.
• Persevere – in time the cravings will pass.
• Be relaxed – try walking, swimming, reading, meditating or phoning an old friend.
• Change your routine and do things in a different order.
• Keep a list of your reasons for quitting – stick a copy on your fridge or on your bathroom mirror.
• Join a club or start a new activity. A new interest is an excellent way to change your routine.

Save a Packet by Quitting

By giving up smoking not only will you see great improvements in your health, but also your bank account. Based on a packet of cigarettes costing $8 and you smoking one packet per day:

• After a week you will have already saved $56. Why not buy some new CDs.
• After a month you will have saved $240. Why not use this saved money on a weekend away?
• By three months you will have an extra $720. You could purchase a digital camera, stereo system or a holiday to the Gold Coast.
• In six months you will be up $1440. Splash out on a new wardrobe or a computer.
• After one year you will have saved close to $3000 - a nice lump sum house payment or pay cash for a wide screen TV or an around the world plane ticket.

Source: Prime Health Group, WHAM, Wellness, Health and Medical, "New Years Resolution Quit to Breathe Easier", 2007.