Addiction Services

Tobacco

Smoking Myths and Facts

Myth: I've been smoking for so long now, the damage is done. There's no point in stopping.
Fact: It's never too late to stop because the body begins to experience positive changes right away. Within 20 minutes, the blood pressure, pulse rate, and temperature of hands and feet all begin to return to normal. Within eight hours, the blood oxygen level increases to normal and carbon monoxide levels drop. Within 48 hours, damaged nerve endings begin to regrow. Within 72 hours, bronchial tubes begin to relax, making it easier to breathe.

Myth: If I stop now, my body will go into shock and I'll get sick.
Fact: Stopping may produce flu-like symptoms, along with headache, dry mouth, constipation and agitation. But this is withdrawal, not sickness. It's the body's way to prepare to be tobacco-free. You just have to remember that withdrawal does not last forever and that good things are happening on the inside.

Myth: Smoking doesn't affect me. I've never had health problems associated with it.
Fact: Nicotine has many indirect affects that people do not immediately associate with smoking. Smoking can aggravate glaucoma, high cholesterol, tooth decay, cataracts and osteoporosis. It can also interfere with the absorption of medications, reducing the effectiveness of prescriptions being taken for other purposes.

Myth: If I stop, I'm going to gain a lot of weight.
Fact: Some people actually lose weight after they stop and for those who gain, the average is 5 to 7 pounds. This weight gain can be due to several reasons: food starts to smell and taste good again, after years of smoking dulling those senses; your metabolism, which had been artificially stimulated by nicotine, is returning to normal; you're eating more as a substitute for smoking. Eating a balanced, healthy diet can help. So will getting involved in healthy leisure activities, which will keep you active and offer a healthier alternative to the time you used to spend smoking. Your Addiction Services counselor can help you find healthy leisure activities in your community.

Keep this in mind: The health damage of a pack of cigarettes a day is about the same as carrying 60 or more extra pounds!

Myth: Smokeless (chewing or spit) tobacco is not as harmful as regular tobacco.
Fact: Spit tobacco has more than 3,000 chemicals, including 28 known carcinogens. Users risk developing cancer of the mouth and throat, leukiplakia (sores where you hold the tobacco in your mouth), tooth and gum disease, as well as an addiction to nicotine, which is present in smokeless tobacco. It is not a safe alternative.

Get Help Today

You could start to experience the benefits of living tobacco-free today. Call your local Addiction Services office to speak with a tobacco-treatment specialist. Offices are located across the province, and the service is free. Tobacco-treatment specialists know how to help you do this successfully, and can support you as you face the challenges ahead. You do not have to do this alone. Help is just a phone call away.