The challenge of abandon the smoking It goes beyond impulse control: psychological fatigue that involves staying away from cigarettes is one of the main factors that leads to relapses, according to new research and specialists consulted by Infobae.
The abandonment of cigarette reports tangible benefits in physical and mental health at any age, although the process usually requires multiple attempts and professional support strategies.
In recent months, two international studies have more precisely delineated the obstacles and gains associated with quitting smoking. One of them, published in the scientific journal addiction by Deakin University in Australia, explored the causes of relapse in almost 2,000 former smokers from Australia, Canada, England and the United States. According to the work, relapse does not respond so much to a lack of will or craving for nicotine, but rather to sustained emotional exhaustion when trying to avoid the return of the habit. This condition, called psychological cessation fatigue, increases the risk of returning to smoking by up to 64% compared to those who report less fatigue.
consulted by Infobaethe doctor specializing in Pulmonology and medical director of Grupo Omint Sebastian Baquero (MN 101,611) maintained: “Fatigue after quitting smoking is a very important factor in predicting relapse. The study showed that CF (fatigue from quitting smoking) predicts risk above and beyond the desire to smoke and abstinence self-efficacy, and even variables such as the time they have not smoked or the use of vaping.”
According to the specialist, “Patients who feel more tired after quitting smoking are more likely to return to smoking”. And in that sense, he reinforced that “it would be important to establish a strategy for this fatigue and alert those who are trying to quit smoking to seek urgent care when this fatigue appears.”
The work of addiction analyzed responses from adults over 18 years of age who consumed tobacco and revealed that fatigue was the only independent predictor of relapse even when variables such as time without smoking and the use of alternatives such as vaping were considered. Baquero specified that “the predictive power of fatigue was independent of the use of nicotine vaping products and independent of the time elapsed since quitting smoking.”
The importance of detecting cessation fatigue lies in its potential value in anticipating relapses and personalizing containment. For Baquero, “what was observed—beyond the methodological limitations of an observational study—is that the most important factor in relapse in nicotine addiction has to do with post-abstinence fatiguea syndrome where the patient feels extremely tired after quitting smoking and that would seem to be the independent factor.” From these findings, it is promoted the need to integrate the assessment of psychological fatigue in health programs that accompany people in quitting tobacco.
While the persistence of fatigue tests the ex-smoker’s commitment, recent evidence also provides concrete reasons to sustain the effort. Both in the short and long term, quitting cigarettes improves health parameters and quality of life. in people of all ages.
In parallel with the progress on the causes of relapse, a second study led by researchers at University College London and published in The Lancet Healthy Longevityanalyzed 9,436 people over 40 years of age in twelve countries to investigate the trajectories of cognitive decline after quitting smoking. The results showed that Those who quit the habit experienced a slower decline in their memory abilities and verbal fluency over the next six years, compared to those who continued smoking. The benefit was evident regardless of the moment in life at which cigarettes were quit.
According to Mikaela Bloombergone of the authors, “It seems that it is never too late to quit smoking, also for the good of the brain”and highlighted that “these results are especially important because middle-aged and elderly smokers tend to be the least likely to try to quit, even though they suffer more from its effects.”
Baquero also assessed the magnitude of these results on brain function: “This study evaluated cognitive function six years ago, since they stopped smoking, and what they saw is that those who stopped smoking and those who smoke continuously had had the same deterioration. Six years later, those who quit the habit at any age have better cognitive functions. Which shows that Quitting smoking is expected to improve the likelihood of preserving brain function”.
Accumulating evidence points to several mechanisms to explain these benefits, such as smoking-induced vascular damage, chronic inflammation, and brain oxidative stress. According to data from the World Health Organization (WHO), About 60% of adult smokers want to quit cigarettesbut there is restricted access to effective treatments and professional support.
Smoking cessation triggers physiological changes from the first minutes. As specified in a note to Infobae medical and scientific sources, 20 minutes after quitting smoking, blood pressure and heart rate drop. After 12 hours, carbon monoxide levels return to normal values, favoring tissue oxygenation. Between two weeks and three months, circulation and lung capacity improveand after one year the risk of coronary heart disease is reduced by half in relation to those who continue smoking.
“The quality of life improves significantly,” the cardiologist told this media. Francisco Toscano (MN 95,358). “From the taste in your mouth to the smell of your clothes, small details that you see every day make a difference.” The pulmonologist Ana María Putruele (MN 55,966), head of the Pneumonology service of the Clinics Hospitalpointed out that “From the first minutes the body begins to recover functions. The pressure drops, oxygenation improves and symptoms such as cough and dyspnea disappear.”
The positive impact is also reflected in the time recovered: according to research by the University College London (UCL), each cigarette cuts between 17 and 22 minutes of life. If a person who smokes ten cigarettes a day manages to quit smoking on January 1, he could regain a day of life by January 8 and add a week to the end of February.
On a social and economic level, other benefits arise: giving up cigarettes eliminates the smell on clothes, hair regains shine and skin is firmed. “Cigarettes can be an obstacle even to finding housing or integrating into the workplace,” Putruele added. For Toscano, “a daily package can represent thousands of pesos per month. Quitting smoking not only lengthens life, it also allows you to save.”
Quitting smoking is not usually achieved in a single attempt. “It is important to see these attempts as learning experiences, not failures,” Putruele said. Baquero, for his part, stressed that “It would be essential to alert those who are trying to quit smoking to seek urgent care when they feel tired”in reference to cessation fatigue.
Support strategies include pharmacological, behavioral and digital interventions recommended by WHO. These include brief advice at each medical consultation, in-person or telephone behavioral support, mobile applications and treatments with nicotine replacement medication or medications such as bupropion and cytisine. The pulmonologist Alejandro Videlahead of the Pneumonology service of the Austral Hospitalexplained that “nicotine replacement and bupropion are available in most Latin American countries, but varenicline is not currently on the market, and cytisine has not yet been introduced.” Videla pointed out that digital resources are still in development, while cognitive-behavioral treatment and medical advice are applied more frequently.
Current recommendations emphasize the importance of combining interventions, seeking professional support and encouraging continuous monitoring.especially those who show signs of fatigue after quitting smoking. Detecting psychological exhaustion early and offering a professional response can sustain the process and increase the chances of success.
