There are no real down sides to stopping smoking, especially once the cravings have passed. Here are ten very good reasons to stop now:
- You will dramatically cut your chances of developing serious illnesses such as heart disease, cancer and lung disease, amongst others.
- You will protect the health of those close to you and your children as you won’t be making them breathe in second-hand smoke, which is proven to be harmful. Also if you don’t smoke, your children are less likely to take it up.
- If you want to have children, you’ll have a better chance of conceiving if you don’t smoke. Smoking can affect the fertility of both men and women.
- Your finances will improve. Work out how much you spend per month on cigarettes (be honest!). Vow to put the money you save towards something special or a monthly treat. You’ll also save money on costs such as private medical insurance. Private health insurance providers usually charge significantly higher health insurance premiums to smokers because they are seen as a greater health risk.
- You’ll smell a lot fresher – tobacco smoke makes your hair, breath and clothes smell stale – it’s a difficult smell to remove whilst you’re still smoking.
- You’ll look a lot better – once you stop smoking you’re likely to have shinier hair, whiter teeth and brighter skin as cigarettes affect all these areas of your appearance. In addition, the repetitive action of smoking can cause fine lines to develop around the mouth and eyes earlier than they normally would.
- You will no longer have to worry about your cigarettes offending other people when you’re out and about. Perhaps you never did but you must admit fewer and fewer people find smoking socially acceptable nowadays.
- Your taste buds will come back to life. Smoking dulls the taste buds so you don’t enjoy as much flavour from food. Once you stop, food will be tastier.
- Your fingers, home and hair will not be stained yellow. Nicotine stains many things and it is not attractive.
- You’ll be less at risk of smoking-related accidents. Those who smoke are more at risk of fires in the home than those who do not.
Do the reasons for wanting to smoke really outweigh these reasons for stopping?