People who quit smoking feel better mentally than before they quit. For those suffering from anxiety or stress disorders, the health-improving effect of quitting smoking can be as great as the effect of antidepressant medication. This is shown by a research study presented in the scientific journal British Medical Journal.

The analysis shows that people who successfully quit smoking reported reduced depression, anxiety and stress after quitting smoking and had a more positive outlook on life than those who continued to smoke.

The improvement in mental health is as great as or greater than the effect that antidepressants can have, the researchers write. Even those who had a psychiatric diagnosis felt better mentally after quitting smoking.

Gemma Taylor, from the University of Birmingham's School of Health and Population Sciences, led the analysis. She hopes the findings will help dispel a persistent myth about smoking:

"It's a common belief that smoking is good for mental health by reducing stress and helping you relax," Gemma Talyor told AFP.

But in reality, it is quitting smoking that is good for the smoker's mental well-being. The incorrect myth is because those who are addicted to nicotine live with constant peaks and valleys in their mental state because nicotine levels in the body vary. At low levels, you get withdrawal symptoms such as worry, depression and anxiety, and when you smoke a cigarette, the levels increase and you feel calmer and more at peace. But smokers are often not aware that it is the nicotine addiction that is behind the negative feelings, but believe that it is due to other things. Therefore, they experience it as if the cigarette improves mental health.