Dr. Osama Abu Al-Rub
How to clean your body of nicotine? And when does the body return to normal after quitting smoking? And when does the craving for this harmful habit end after you quit it? And what are the symptoms that appear next?
When does the body return to normal after quitting smoking?
According to the American Cancer Society, within minutes of quitting after your last cigarette, your body begins to recover, according to the following:
- 20 minutes after quitting smoking: Your heart rate and blood pressure decrease.
- A few days after quitting smoking: The level of carbon monoxide in the blood drops to normal.
- 2 weeks to 3 months after quitting smoking: blood circulation improves and lung function increases.
- 1 to 12 months after quitting smoking: cough and shortness of breath decrease. The small hair-like structures (cilia) that evacuate mucus from the lungs begin to regain normal function, increasing their ability to manage mucus, clean the lungs and reduce the risk of infection.
- One to two years after quitting smoking: your risk of a heart attack drops significantly.
- 5 to 10 years after quitting smoking: your risk of developing cancer of the mouth, throat and larynx is halved. The risk of stroke is also reduced.
- 10 years after quitting smoking: The risk of developing lung cancer is about half that of a person who still smokes (after 10 to 15 years). The risk of bladder, esophagus and kidney cancer is reduced.
- After 15 years of quitting smoking: Your risk of coronary heart disease approaches that of a non-smoker.
When does the urge to smoke stop after you quit?
Nicotine cravings can begin to reappear 30 minutes after your last cigarette, which varies depending on the amount and duration of your consumption. The urge to start smoking again peaks within two to three days and usually subsides after 3 to 5 minutes. The desire to start smoking again usually stops after 4 to 6 weeks.
How do you deal with the urge to smoke after quitting?
- Distract yourself – which often begs you to return to this harmful habit – by focusing on something else.
- Stop doing anything about your cravings until the craving has passed.
- Take 20 deep breaths.
- Drink a glass of cold water or fruit juice.
- You can confuse food cravings with nicotine cravings, and vice versa, so it’s important to eat 3 regular meals each day.
What are the symptoms that appear after quitting smoking?
Common symptoms, called withdrawal (withdrawal) symptoms, when you quit smoking include:
- Strong urge to smoke.
- Feeling angry or upset.
- Feeling stressed and anxious.
- Difficulty concentrating.
- sleeping troubles
- Being hungry or gaining weight.
- Feeling anxious, sad or depressed, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Benefits of quitting smoking
According to the World Health Organization, quitting smoking has both immediate and long-term benefits. These benefits apply to all age groups, even those who already have smoking-related health problems.
Benefits include: halting decline in lung function, ability to walk becomes easier, lung capacity increases, appearance of skin improves, chronic cough disappears and risk of heart attack decreases. In the long term, quitting smoking reduces the risk of cancer, heart disease, stroke, and respiratory disease.
When do the symptoms of quitting smoking disappear?
Symptoms of quitting smoking usually disappear after 4 to 6 weeks.
Benefits of quitting smoking for men
Improves smoking cessation for men’s sexual health. According to a fact sheet published in Al-Jazeera’s Net Encyclopedia, smoking affects reproductive health and sexual ability, as it increases the risk of infertility and causes erectile dysfunction, due to the lack of blood supply to the penis. It is also associated with sperm problems. A study has indicated that quitting smoking leads to improved erection.
Smoking is also one of the causes of impotence.
The hardest part of quitting smoking
It is believed that the last day of the first three is the most difficult stage in quitting smoking. On this day, many people experience withdrawal symptoms, including irritability, anxiety, insomnia, and increased appetite.
How are you coping with the third day of quitting smoking?
- Eat 5 small meals a day to avoid confusing hunger with cravings.
- to drink a lot of water. Cut down on coffee and soft drinks.
- Take a short walk or exercise to improve your mood and eliminate some of the anxiety associated with nicotine withdrawal. A long walk before bed can also help avoid the insomnia associated with quitting smoking.
- Close your eyes and breathe.
- If you feel tired, which is common at this stage of quitting smoking, take a short nap during the day or go to bed a little earlier than usual.
Is nicotine considered a drug?
Nicotine is a stimulant drug that speeds up the flow of messages between the brain and the body. It is the main psychoactive ingredient in tobacco products, according to the services of the Alcohol and Drug Foundation in Australia.
The harms of nicotine
According to the American Heart Association, nicotine is a dangerous and addictive chemical. It can cause increased blood pressure, heart rate, blood flow to the heart, and narrowing of the arteries.
Nicotine can also contribute to hardening of the walls of the arteries, which can lead to a heart attack.
This chemical can stay in your body for 6-8 hours depending on how often you smoke.
As with most addictive substances, there are side effects upon withdrawal.
Some newer e-cigarettes and tobacco products release more nicotine than traditional cigarettes.
Does nicotine cause death?
The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that 50 to 60 milligrams of nicotine is a lethal dose for an adult weighing around 150 pounds (68 kilograms).
Traditionally, a person who smokes absorbs about one milligram of nicotine per cigarette.
How long does it take for the body to get rid of nicotine?
There may still be traces of nicotine in saliva and blood 3 days after stopping nicotine, according to a report in Healthline.
According to a Deutsche Welle report, nicotine can stay in the blood for about 8 days, and much of it will be expelled later through urine.
As for the remaining amount of nicotine, it undergoes metabolism and yields a substance known as cotinine, which can remain in the body for a full month after the last cigarette has been smoked.
Traces of nicotine can usually be found, in hair follicles, up to weeks, months or even years after a person was last exposed to nicotine.
Cleanse the body of nicotine
The best way to eliminate nicotine from your body is to avoid tobacco products. If you smoke, think about quitting this bad habit. This way, your body’s cells can focus on breaking down and eliminating the nicotine.
There are several things you can do to speed up this process:
drink water
When you drink more water, more nicotine is released from your body through urine.
Practice sports
This increases the body’s metabolic rate, which can lead to faster elimination of nicotine. The sweat released by exercise carries with it nicotine and its derivatives.
Eat foods rich in antioxidants
Antioxidants can help increase the body’s metabolic rate. Options include oranges and carrots, which also contain compounds such as fiber.
Does walking remove nicotine from the body?
Exercise, including walking, helps speed the elimination of nicotine from the body.
Foods that cleanse the body of nicotine
These foods can help remove nicotine from the body, according to Deutsche Welle:
vegetables
A study confirmed that folic acid reduces the effect of nicotine on the pancreas, and that this substance reduces the harmful effect of nicotine on the body.
AndContains Spinach, broccoli, cabbage and cabbage are rich in folic acid, which explains their effective role in cleansing the body of nicotine.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C helps cleanse the body of nicotine, and numerous laboratory tests have shown the effect of this vitamin in neutralizing the toxic properties of nicotine.
When it comes to vitamin C, some believe that oranges are the richest source of this vitamin, but its exact amount in peppers, especially yellow ones, exceeds that of oranges.
the water
We know that nicotine dehydrates the body, hence the importance of drinking plenty of water. Drinking water with healthy fluids is the best way to flush out nicotine and cleanse the body. Here, health experts advise drinking more green tea as it is rich in antioxidants.
Source : Al Jazeera + Deutsche Welle + The World Health Organization + Websites + Health line
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