But the person can focus on the tremendous health benefits of not smoking. They'll feel better, have more energy and live longer. And they can always lose the pounds they gain and learn better ways of preventing and dealing with bad moods than puffing on cigarettes. The book lists several mind-numbing statistics about smoking that many people don't consider when they light up. For example, smoking is the greatest source of preventable death in our society.
Smokers die an average of six to eight years earlier than nonsmokers.
Eighty-seven percent of all lung cancers are caused by smoking. But many who quit simply for the health benefits become discouraged if they don't see the advantages of not smoking in their daily lives. Fisher therefore offers suggestions on how to find the payoffs of smoking cessation within hours of quitting. Though smokers are at very high risk for cancer, heart disease and emphysema, the risks for heart disease decline within hours of the last cigarette. When smokers quit, their blood can carry more oxygen to the rest of the body, so the heart doesn't have to work as hard.