Smoking is Bad for Mental health also

A common idea that smoking helps to relieve stress and depression.But research suggests the opposite may be true and that smoking could be detrimental to your mental health.As people are preparing to make a new set of new year resolutions, Ash Wales today said the new US research adds further evidence to the health benefits of stopping smoking.Tanya Buchanan, chief executive of Ash Wales, said: “This new research suggests that giving up smoking actually relieves symptoms of depression and pours cold water on the claim that smoking eases anxiety and depression.“We already know that quitting smoking results in significant health benefits, but this study suggests there are also mental health benefits as well.“There has never been a better time to quit smoking. Smoking kills around 5,650 people in Wales every year and it is the single most preventable cause of premature death.“Smoking is an addiction and I know how hard it can be for some people to give up, but there is help and support available from Stop Smoking Wales so you don’t have to go it alone.”

The study, published in the journal Nicotine and Tobacco Research, measured smokers’ moods during their first six months of attempting to quit.It found that those who were successful in quitting were the happiest, while those who gave up their quit attempt were the unhappiest of all the groups.The study involved 236 heavy-drinking male and female smokers who wanted to give up smoking and looked for symptoms of depression at different stages over a 28-week period.

The researchers concluded: “During the first six months following a planned quit attempt, being abstinent in a particular week appears to be associated with lower levels of concurrent depressive symptoms.“These results are not concordant with the view that intentional smoking abstinence exacerbates depressive symptoms.“Efforts to promote smoking cessation should highlight that individuals are likely to feel more rather than less psychologically healthy when they successfully quit smoking.”