Quitting cigarettes, but vaping is a smoking gun

One of the most addictive substances in the world, the nicotine in cigarettes, makes quitting smoking particularly challenging, yet not impossible. However, though the gains that come with adopting a cigarette-free lifestyle are potentially lifesaving, doctors are concerned that vaping has filled the void.

“It was gut wrenching. It was painful. I went through a thousand different emotions. I felt like I had lost my best friend. I literally mourned cigarettes,” says Dita Glassom of her experience of giving up smoking during the COVID-19 pandemic. Five years later, she knows that even one drag would undo all the progress she’s made.

“I see myself as a recovering addict,” Glassom says, “because the temptation when I’m stressed, when I don’t want to eat, or when I’m emotional, is to still reach out for cigarettes.” Having smoked 15 to 25 cigarettes a day for more than 40 years, Glassom had tried and failed to give up smoking once before. Yet when the initial COVID-19 lockdown started, she decided it was an opportune time to try again.

“I bought a carton, and had a couple of packets, and I thought, ‘I’ll smoke and then stop and see how I go. If I get desperate when the first six weeks are over, I’ll go buy more packs.’ Only, that wasn’t a possibility.” With cigarettes soon removed from the shelves and available only on the black market at exorbitant prices, Glassom says she had no choice.

“I went cold turkey. If you get through the first five days of not smoking, you’re already starting to detox,” she says. To ease her cravings and address the need to have something in her hand and mouth, she chewed toothpicks constantly. While Glassom had the backing of friends and family, being home alone during lockdown gave her the space and time to support herself through the process.

“Had I been in my office and going through these deep emotional experiences – irritability, depression, anger, sadness, I wouldn’t have persevered,” she says. “I wasn’t an easy person to be around. I also sweated for days, and felt sick, experiencing nausea, headaches, and constipation.”

Though it took time to see all the benefits of quitting, Glassom says she soon noticed that the smell of smoke no longer permeated her clothing, house, and car. She was shocked that she had never noticed the smell before. The financial benefits were also a big motivator. “I started putting the cigarette money in a jar so I could see my savings,” she says. “At the end of COVID-19, I put that money towards doing something for myself.”

She had also felt like a social pariah, especially in airports or shopping centres where smoking areas had become increasingly sparse. Another immediate benefit was her increased work productivity in the absence of smoke breaks.

Later, she noticed that her skin and energy levels improved. The flavour of food was also enhanced along with her appetite – a double-edged sword. “Over time, your fitness and lung capacity changes. I now get bronchitis far less frequently than I used to,” she says.

“The truth is we’re not giving up anything by stopping smoking, we’re gaining a new lease on life,” says Dr Anton Meyberg, a specialist physician and pulmonologist at Linksfield Clinic. In marking “No Smoking Day” this month, doctors are celebrating the decreased prevalence of smoking in the wake of widespread education and government interventions, but say it remains a pervasive issue.

“I have seen a decline in the smoking behaviour of our community,” Meyberg says. “There’s a trend towards healthier lifestyles and cleaner living. Smoking has become less ‘cool’ and more obtrusive.”

The substantial benefits of quitting smoking, he says, include visible improvement in circulation, blood pressure, and heart rate within minutes to hours. “The major benefit, of course, is the reduction in the development of heart and lung disease as well as cancers.”

Johannesburg-based general practitioner, Dr Sheri Fanaroff, elaborates. “Aside from more obvious cancers like lung, mouth, throat, and oesophageal cancer, there are numerous cancers impacted by smoking including leukaemia, bladder, cervix, colon, rectal, and kidney cancers.”

Meyberg says he is often asked if quitting smoking will be that beneficial if the damage is already done, especially when it comes to those who already have emphysema or circulatory issues. “It’s always beneficial because the cessation of smoking delays the onset of symptoms and worsening of the underlying condition, sometimes by many years. Unfortunately, once the lungs are damaged, they don’t regenerate, but stopping smoking undoubtedly prevents further damage.”

In the wake of the decline in smoking, however, there’s concern about the growth of vaping. “Vaping has become an epidemic among our adolescents,” Meyberg says. “There has been a 150% rise in its prevalence, and we are yet to see the disastrous consequences.

“Many people are under the false impression that by stopping smoking and taking up vaping, they have found a healthy alternative,” he says. “This isn’t true. Some studies are now showing that people who gave up smoking and started vaping are at a higher risk of developing lung cancer.”

Fanaroff argues that where we were with marketing of smoking 40 years ago is where we are now with the promotion of vaping. “Interestingly, smoking isn’t seen as cool, but vaping is certainly considered part of the rite of passage for teenagers. Vaping is prevalent in Grades 6 and 7, with a major epidemic from Grades 8 to 10. Respiratory distress and other complications from vaping often occur, especially among teenagers and young adults in their early 20s.”

Though there are various approaches one can take to quit smoking, the common denominator involves having a support system to help you through the process, Meyberg says. Ultimately, it has to be your decision, Fanaroff says.

“Vaping is a gateway to smoking, which is a gateway to further drugs,” she says. “The best way of quitting [smoking and vaping] is not to start at all.”