See how stopping smoking helps you over time with our Recovery Calendar

Within 20 minutes of stopping smoking

• Blood pressure drops to normal
• Pulse slows to normal
• Temperature of hands and feet increases to normal
• Damage to your heart begins to subside

Within 8 hours

• Carbon monoxide level in blood decreases to near zero
• Oxygen level in blood increases to normal within 12 hours
• Nicotine is all out of the body

Within 24 hours

• Chance of a heart attack decreases by 50%
• Lungs start to clear out mucus and smoking debris

Within 48 hours

• Damaged nerve endings start to re-grow
• Senses of smell and taste begin to improve

Within 72 hours

• Bronchial tubes relax, making breathing easier

2 weeks to 3 months

• Blood circulation improves throughout the body
• Exercise becomes easier
• Lung function increases by 30%

1 to 9 months

• Coughing, shortness of breath and sinus congestion all decrease
• Cilia re-grow in lungs, increasing the lungs’ ability to clean themselves and reduce frequency of infections

One year

• Risk of heart disease is reduced by half
• Risk of lung cancer is reduced by half

Five years

• Risk of stroke decreases to the level of a non-smoker

10 years

• Precancerous cells in the body are replaced by healthy cells
• Incidences of other cancers (mouth, larynx, esophagus, bladder, kidney, and pancreas) all decrease

15 years

• Overall risk of death nearly returns to the level of someone who never smoked
• Risk of heart disease returns to levels of a non smoker

20 years

• Risk of lung cancer returns to levels close to those of a non smoker

Source: American College of Chest Physicians