Smoking and Mental Health

When you ask a smoker why he or she smokes, they say it relaxes them, this is what they believe smoking does for them but in reality reserve is the case.

Smoking, anxiety and mood

Most smokers say they want to stop, but some continue because smoking seems to relieve stress and anxiety.

It’s a common belief that smoking helps you relax. But smoking actually increases anxiety and tension.

Smokers are also more likely than non-smokers to develop depression over time.

Why it feels like smoking helps us relax

Smoking cigarettes interferes with certain chemicals in the brain.

When smokers haven’t had a cigarette for a while, the craving for another one makes them feel irritable and anxious.

These feelings can be temporarily relieved when they light up a cigarette. So smokers associate the improved mood with smoking.

In fact, it’s the effects of smoking itself that’s likely to have caused the anxiety in the first place.

Cutting out smoking does improve mood and reduces anxiety.

The mental health benefits of quitting smoking, studies show the following:

• Anxiety, depression and stress levels are lower
• Quality of life and positive mood improve
• The dosage of some medicines used to treat mental health problems can be reduced

According to the results of a recent systematic review, quitting smoking may produce positive health effects in a matter of weeks. The review found that people who quit smoking had a greater reduction in anxiety, depression, and symptoms of stress than people who did not. If accurate, these findings could help motivate millions of people looking for more reasons to quit smoking or avoid stopping for fears of negative mental health or social effects.

Each year, smoking cigarettes claims the lives of more than 480,000 people in the United States and more than 8 million people around the world. And, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), smoking is the leading cause of preventable illness, impoverishment, and death worldwide.

Smoking rates have been falling substantially over the last 50 years, particularly in high income countries, with the rate of tobacco use now at 19.7% in the U.S in 2018. In contrast, this rate remains stubbornly high (36.7%) in people with mental health issues.

People with mental health problems, including anxiety, depression or schizophrenia:

Are much more likely to smoke than the general population

Tend to smoke more heavily

Die on average 10 to 20 years earlier than those who don’t experience mental health problems – smoking plays a major role in this difference in life expectancy

Need higher doses of some antipsychotic medicines and antidepressants because smoking interferes with the way these medicines work.

To stop smoking can be as effective as antidepressants. People with mental health problems are likely to feel much calmer and more positive, and have a better quality of life, after giving up smoking.

Evidence suggests the beneficial effect of stopping smoking on symptoms of anxiety and depression can equal that of taking antidepressants.

The American Lung Association offer tips for cutting down and quitting smoking successfully. They say that every smoker can quit, and they will help find the technique that works for every individual smoker.