quitting smoking | Wellness Secrets of a SuperAger

As if smoking weren’t bad enough for you, it seems the new coronavirus likes it, too. The lungs of people who smoke may contain more of the receptors that the new coronavirus uses to invade cells. This could explain why people with the virus who also smoke appear to be particularly vulnerable to severe illness.

The majority of people who acquire SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, experience mild-to-moderate symptoms and will fully recover without hospital treatment.

However, several studies suggest that people who smoke are significantly more likely than people who do not to develop a severe form of the illness.

For example, according to a recent study of COVID-19 cases in hospitals in mainland China, 11.8% of people who smoked had a nonsevere form of the disease, while 16.9% had severe disease.

To break into cells and start replicating itself, the virus latches onto a protein receptor called angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), which is present in the cells’ membranes.

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I have written about quitting smoking and the damage smoking does for several years. You can go to my Page – How many ways does smoking harm you ?to read further on it. To be honest I have a hard time understanding how anyone who is able to read can still be a smoker, but, clearly, there are still millions of them/you. The following tips are from Rush University Medical Center.

There is no arguing about the glamor of smoking.

When you’re ready to quit, these strategies can help:

Quitting smoking for good can be a challenge, but your health and lifestyle will reap the rewards:

Just 20 minutes after you quit, your heart rate and blood pressure both drop.
Within two to three months, your heart attack risk begins to drop and your lung function starts to improve.
Within nine months, you’ll be coughing less and experience less shortness of breath.
Five to 15 years after quitting, your stroke risk will be the same as a nonsmoker’s.

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