No Smoking Policy: Because we care about your health and the health of our patients and visitors, smoking is not allowed anywhere on any Cleveland Clinic campus. This policy includes electronic cigarettes and vaping systems.
Smoking and tobacco use increase your risk of many health problems. According to the American Heart Association, cigarette smoking is the most important preventable cause of premature death in the United States. Each year, smoking is responsible for 480,000 deaths in the United States, including more than 41,000 deaths caused by secondhand smoke. That’s about 1,300 deaths every day.
What's the link between smoking and cardiovascular disease?
Smoking is a major cause of atherosclerosis, which is the buildup of cholesterol and fatty deposits (plaque) on the inside of the arteries. This keeps blood from flowing through the arteries as it should.
Atherosclerosis can lead to coronary artery disease. The coronary arteries carry blood to the heart. If they get clogged with plaque, they can become narrow or blocked, and the heart can’t get enough oxygen-rich blood to send out to the rest of the body. In response, the heart has to work harder, which can cause chest pain (angina), other symptoms, and heart attack.
Atherosclerosis can also lead to peripheral artery disease (PAD), which affects blood flow to your arms and legs. The condition causes painful leg muscle cramps when walking (intermittent claudication) and increases your risk of stroke.
What's the link between smoking and heart attack?
The more you smoke and the longer you smoke, the higher your risk of a heart attack. Any amount of smoking increases your risk of a heart attack.
People who smoke a pack of cigarettes a day have more than twice the risk of a heart attack than nonsmokers.
What's the link between women who smoke and take birth control pills?
If you take birth control pills, smoking greatly increases your risk of coronary and PAD, blood clots, heart attack and stroke.
What other health problems are caused by smoking?
Cigarettes contain more than 4,000 chemicals and poisons, including more than 60 that cause cancer.
Smoking decreases:
- The amount of oxygen sent to your heart and other tissues in the body.
- Your ability to exercise.
- HDL (good) cholesterol levels.
Smoking increases your risk of:
- High blood pressure and fast heart rate.
- Coronary artery disease and heart attack.
- PAD and stroke.
- Lung cancer, throat cancer, chronic asthma, chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
- Diabetes.
- Gum disease and ulcers.
- Blood clots.
- Coronary artery disease after bypass surgery.
- Getting sick. This risk is especially high for children exposed to smoke. Respiratory and ear infections are more common in children who are around secondhand smoke. Smoking also causes damage to the cells that line your coronary arteries and other blood vessels.
How does smoking affect others?
Secondhand smoke can cause problems for people who don’t smoke but who are exposed to it. This is especially true for children. Secondhand smoke can cause breathing problems, cancer and heart disease.
The American Heart Association estimates that about 37,000 to 40,000 people die each year from heart and blood vessel diseases caused by other people’s smoke.
The benefits of quitting
Many good things happen when you stop smoking:
- Live longer. According to the American Heart Association, quitting smoking between the ages of 35 and 39 adds an average of 6 to 9 years to your life. If you quit when you are age 65 to 69, you can live 1 to 4 years longer.
- Lower your risk of cardiovascular disease. Your risk of heart disease, heart attack and dying from heart disease is cut by at least half when you stop smoking. Quitting also lowers your risk of high blood pressure, PAD and stroke.
- Lower your risk of other health problems, including diabetes, lung cancer, throat cancer, emphysema, chronic bronchitis and asthma, ulcers, and gum disease.
- Feel better. You won’t cough as much or have as many sore throats after you quit. You’ll also have more energy.
- Look and smell better. Quitting smoking can help you avoid wrinkles on your face, stops your teeth from turning yellow, and your hair clothes and breath won’t smell bad.
- Improve your sense of taste and smell.
- Save money.
How can I quit?
Plan ahead! Most smokers don’t plan to fail; they fail to plan. A good quitting plan will help you succeed. When you try to quit "cold turkey" you have only a 5% chance of success.
Before you quit
You must be emotionally and mentally ready to quit smoking. You must want to quit for yourself, and not just to please your friends or family.
- Pick a date to stop smoking and stick to it.
- Make a list of your reasons for quitting. Read the list every day, before and after you quit.
- Write down when you smoke, why you smoke and what you’re doing when you smoke so you can learn your smoking triggers.
- Stop smoking in certain situations (such as during breaks at work, in the car or after dinner) before you quit completely.
- Make a list of things you can do instead of smoking.
- Visualize yourself as a nonsmoker.
- Tell your family and friends about your plans to quit and ask for their support. Ask family members who smoke to think about quitting with you.
- Ask your healthcare provider about ways to help you quit You may find it helpful to use medication or nicotine gum, patches, inhalers, lozenges or nasal sprays.
- Join a smoking cessation support group or program.
When you quit
- Get rid of all cigarettes/tobacco and ashtrays.
- If you live with a smoker, ask them not to smoke around you.
- Don’t focus on your cravings. Remember that what you’re feeling is temporary. When you are tempted, read your list of reasons to quit.
- When you get the urge to smoke, take a deep breath. Hold it for 10 seconds and slowly release it. Repeat this several times until the urge to smoke is gone.
- Keep yourself active. Read your list of things you can do instead of smoking.
- Keep your hands busy. Doodle, play with a pencil or straw, or work on a computer.
- Exercising has many benefits and will help you relax.
What about electronic cigarettes and vaping?
E-cigarettes and vaping systems are not FDA-approved ways to stop smoking. The short-and long-term health effects of these products are not fully known, but they have been linked to deadly lung disease and a higher risk of stroke, heart attack and artery disease.
- Avoid places, people and situations associated with smoking.
- Don’t eat instead of smoking. Snack on healthy foods (carrot or celery sticks, sugar-free hard candies) or chew gum when you have the urge to smoke.
- Drink plenty of fluids, but limit alcoholic and caffeinated beverages. They can trigger the urge to smoke.
- Remind yourself that you are a nonsmoker. Nonsmokers don’t smoke!
How does it feel to quit?
At first, you may crave cigarettes, be irritable, feel very hungry, cough a lot, get headaches, have trouble concentrating or be constipated. These are symptoms of nicotine withdrawal and will pass within 10 to 14 days after you quit. Talk to your doctor if the symptoms are difficult to handle. They are much easier to treat than the diseases caused by smoking.
Withdrawal symptoms are signs that your body is healing and getting used to being smoke-free. Stay in control when you have them, and think about your reasons for quitting.
You may still have the urge to smoke, even after withdrawal symptoms pass. Smoking goes hand-in-hand with many emotions and your social life. It is important to break these associations and enjoy life without smoking.
Do not lose hope if you relapse. If this happens, review the reasons why you wanted to become a nonsmoker. Plan ahead and think about what you will do next time you get the urge to smoke.
What happens when you quit
After 20 minutes
- You stop polluting the air.
- Your blood pressure is lower and your heart rate gets slower.
- Your hands and feet get warmer.
After 8 hours
- The carbon monoxide level in your blood returns to normal.
- There is more oxygen in your blood.
After 24 hours
- You have a lower risk of having a heart attack.
After 48 hours
- Your nerve endings adjust to the lack of nicotine.
- You can smell and taste things better.
After 2 weeks to 3 months
- You have better blood circulation.
- You can exercise with fewer problems.
After 1 to 9 months
- You cough less and have less sinus congestion and shortness of breath.
- You have more energy.
After 1 year
- Your risk of heart disease is cut in half compared to when you smoked.
After 5 to 15 years
- Your risk of stroke is half that of a lifelong nonsmoker.
After 10 years
- Your risk of dying from lung cancer is about the same as that of a person who never smoked.
- You have a lower risk of cancer of the mouth, larynx, esophagus, bladder, kidney and pancreas.
After 15 years
- Your risk of heart disease is the same as that of a person who never smoked.
Resources: where to get help
Ohio Tobacco Quitline
800.QUIT.NOW (800.784.8669)
You may also contact your local chapter of the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association or American Lung Association.
Centers for Disease Control
National Cancer Institute
cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/tobacco
National Clearinghouse for Alcohol Abuse and Drug Information
