Quitting cigarettes reduces respiratory problems ‘within weeks’

Washington - Young adults aged 18 to 24 years who stop smoking for at least two weeks report substantially fewer respiratory symptoms, especially coughing, a new study has said.

For the finding, Karen Calabro, DrPH and Alexander Prokhorov, MD, PhD, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Centre, Houston, compared self-reported respiratory symptoms among two

groups of college students who participated in programs designed to motivate them to stop smoking.

One group achieved smoking cessation for two weeks or longer and the other group failed to stop smoking. More than half of the students smoked 5 to 10 cigarettes a day and had smoked for 1 to 5 years.

The study’s findings have been published in the journal Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology.

“That the benefit of stopping smoking starts in days to weeks - not years or decades - is important. Now health care providers can counsel young smokers that their breathing can feel better soon after they

stop. This can help to motivate young adults to stop smoking before the severe damage is done,” said Harold Farber, MD, MSPH, Editor of Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology and Associate

Professor of Pediatrics, Section of Pulmonology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX.