What are the immediate benefits of quitting smoking for women?
The immediate health benefits of quitting smoking are substantial. Within a few hours, the level of carbon monoxide in the blood begins to decline. (Carbon monoxide, a colorless, odorless gas found in cigarette smoke, reduces the blood’s ability to carry oxygen.) Heart rate and blood pressure, which were abnormally high while smoking, begin to return to normal. Within a few weeks, women who quit smoking have improved circulation, don’t produce as much phlegm, and don’t cough or wheeze as often. Women can also expect significant improvements in lung function within several months of quitting (4). Also, women who quit smoking reduce the risk of infertility, and pregnant women who quit early in their pregnancy reduce the risk of the baby being born too early and with an abnormally low weight (1, 5). • What are the long-term benefits of quitting smoking for women? Quitting smoking dramatically reduces the risk of developing an illness caused by smoking (2, 6): • The risk of death from hear
