Quitting Smoking

On this page

Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Treatments and Therapies

Learn More

• Living With
• Related Issues
• Specifics

See, Play and Learn

• Health Check Tools

Research

• Statistics and Research
• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

For You

• Teenagers
• Women
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Tobacco use is the most common preventable cause of death. About half of the people who don't quit smoking will die of smoking-related problems. Quitting smoking is important for your health.

Soon after you quit, your circulation begins to improve, and your blood pressure starts to return to normal. Your sense of smell and taste return, and it's easier for you to breathe. In the long term, giving up tobacco can help you live longer. Your risk of getting cancer decreases with each year you stay smoke-free.

Quitting is not easy. You may have short-term effects such as weight gain, irritability, and anxiety. Some people try several times before they succeed. There are many ways to quit smoking. Some people stop "cold turkey." Others benefit from step-by-step manuals, counseling, or medicines or products that help reduce nicotine addiction. Some people think that switching to e-cigarettes can help you quit smoking, but that has not been proven. Your health care provider can help you find the best way for you to quit.

NIH: National Cancer Institute

Start Here

• BeTobaccoFree.gov (Department of Health and Human Services)
• Cigarette Smoking: Health Risks and How to Quit (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish
• Create My Quit Plan (National Cancer Institute, Tobacco Control Research Branch) Also in Spanish
• Harms of Smoking and Health Benefits of Quitting (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish
• How to Quit Smoking (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• How to Quit Using Tobacco (American Cancer Society) Also in Spanish
• Quit Smoking (Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion) Also in Spanish
• Smokefree.gov (National Cancer Institute, Tobacco Control Research Branch)

Treatments and Therapies

• 5 Things to Know about Complementary Health Approaches for Quitting Smoking (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)
• Using Medications Can Help You Quit (National Cancer Institute, Tobacco Control Research Branch)
• Want to Quit Smoking? FDA-Approved and FDA-Cleared Cessation Products Can Help (Food and Drug Administration) Also in Spanish

Living With

• Handling Nicotine Withdrawal and Triggers When You Decide To Quit Tobacco (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish
• Help for Cravings and Tough Situations while You're Quitting Tobacco (American Cancer Society)
• How to Help Someone Quit Smoking (American Cancer Society)
• Managing Nicotine Withdrawal (National Cancer Institute, Tobacco Control Research Branch)

Related Issues

• Fight Cravings with Exercise (National Cancer Institute, Tobacco Control Research Branch)
• Maintain Your Weight (National Cancer Institute, Tobacco Control Research Branch)
• What's in a Cigarette? (American Lung Association)

Specifics

• Depression and Smoking (National Cancer Institute, Tobacco Control Research Branch)
• Smoking Cessation in Recovering Alcoholics (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish

Health Check Tools

• Quiz: How Strong Is Your Nicotine Addiction? (National Cancer Institute, Tobacco Control Research Branch)

Statistics and Research

• Complementary Health Approaches for Smoking Cessation: What the Science Says (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)
• Smoking Cessation: Fast Facts (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Smoking Cessation (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Effectiveness of the Offer of the Smoke Free Smartphone App Compared...
• Article: Anti-industry beliefs and attitudes mediate the effect of culturally tailored anti-smoking...
• Article: Training secondary school students as anti-smoke ambassadors using the service-learning model:...
• Quitting Smoking -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• American Cancer Society
• American Lung Association
• Lung HelpLine and Tobacco QuitLine (American Lung Association)
• National Cancer Institute Also in Spanish
• National Institute on Drug Abuse Also in Spanish

Teenagers

• How Can I Quit Smoking? (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Women

• Health Effects of Cigarettes: Reproductive Health
• Smokefree Women (National Cancer Institute, Tobacco Control Research Branch)
• Smoking -- Medicines to Help You Quit (Food and Drug Administration)

Patient Handouts

• Dispelling Myths about Nicotine Replacement Therapy (National Cancer Institute, Tobacco Control Research Branch) - PDF
• Nicotine and tobacco (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Nicotine replacement therapy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Smoking and surgery (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Smoking cessation medications (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Stop smoking support programs (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Weight gain after quitting smoking: What to do (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish