Why Quit Smoking?

If you are considering a life altering surgery like a face lift or tummy tuck, you have to consider if you can actually stop smoking. This is a very important thing to consider as all physicians would require you to stop smoking at least temporarily. Here is why.

Anesthesiologists are particularly concerned that a smoker who has not stopped smoking would have significantly less oxygen supply in the body. Nicotine increases the amount of carbon monoxide attached to the hemoglobin in the blood. This makes the heart pump slower and the blood pressure rise.

Another thing that can be noted for smokers is that their lungs have higher mucus contents. The lungs are also having great difficulty clearing airways and passages because of the mucus in the lungs that are not properly secreted because of the effect of smoking. This makes the patient more susceptible to infection, chronic cough and other pulmonary problems. There is also a risk that the lungs might collapse. To add to this, smoking has been reported to slow down wound healing and increase the risks of an individual to have cardiovascular ailments or even a stroke.

Before undergoing surgery, your doctor will require you to quit smoking for at least four weeks. The most ideal duration to stop smoking prior to a surgery is actually ten weeks. This could make the condition of the patient almost as good as person who does not smoke.

Post surgery complications may be avoided if the patient follows this requirement. Yes it is not easy but think about the consequences that you might have to face if you do not quit smoking before your operation. There are patients who report having to go back to the hospital because their wound reopened. There are also those who say that their wounds are turning black or red, or even the edges of the stitching started to come apart. This is really very serious so do not even consider lying to your doctor about it because at the end, you are going to suffer too.

So remember, if you plan to have a face life or tummy tuck: stop smoking. This may actually be the key to your smoking cessation. If you want to really enjoy be fruits of your surgery, don’t start smoking again. Quitting is better for your health and wellbeing than cosmetic surgery any day.