Caitriona Reynolds
Health Inequalities Project Manager, Tobacco Free Ireland
Respiratory diseases are conditions that affect the airways and other structures of the lungs. The leading cause of respiratory disease is smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke.
Respiratory diseases may include lung or upper respiratory cancers, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), emphysema (air sacks in lungs are damaged), asthma, pneumonia, flu and many more.
Smoking causes severe respiratory harm
Each day, one in five people admitted with respiratory disease are in hospital because of smoking-related harm. People who smoke are almost twice as likely to have a long-standing illness compared to those who don’t.
Lung cancer is one of the most common cancers in Ireland. Smoking is the single biggest risk factor for lung cancer, known to cause 90% of lung cancers. Smoking can cause asthma attacks or flare-ups to happen more often, which can also be more severe and harder to control, even with medicine. There is a direct relationship between smoking and the development of COPD and its progression and treatment.
Secondhand smoke harms lungs
Secondhand smoke is also a risk factor for lung cancer and other respiratory diseases. It can exacerbate asthma and COPD and cause impaired lung function and lower respiratory illnesses in children.
Other respiratory conditions that are impacted by smoking are coughing, wheezing, phlegm and dyspnoea (a condition that causes the sensation of running out of air and not being able to breathe fast or deep enough).
Fortunately, even with an established respiratory disease, quitting at any point improves your overall breathing and health. In fact, the benefit to your health and improvement in symptoms from stopping smoking can often be greater than from medications.
Smoking is the single biggest
risk factor for lung cancer.
Some benefits of quitting smoking
Ex-smokers report better physical and mental health than current smokers, at all ages. Here are some examples of the benefits of quitting smoking directly related to respiratory health:
- Within 72 hours, breathing gets easier and lung capacity increases.
- Within 3 weeks, mucous in the lungs loosens and lung function improves.
- Within 10–15 years of quitting, the risk of lung cancer falls to half that of a non-smoker.
Quit smoking with personalised support
The HSE has a wide variety of free support available for anyone who wants to quit smoking through the QUIT service. The QUIT service provides personalised, evidence-based plans, tailored to your needs, using any combination of the support options. You can access free Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) through the service.
Visit QUIT.ie or call 1800 201 203 to find out more.
