Willie Nelson Stops Smoking Due To Breathing Problems

    NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - NOVEMBER 13: (FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY) Willie Nelson performs onstage during the 53rd annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena on November 13, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Terry Wyatt/Getty Images,)
    NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - NOVEMBER 13: (FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY) Willie Nelson performs onstage during the 53rd annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena on November 13, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Terry Wyatt/Getty Images,)

    Willie Nelson has revealed he quit smoking... cigarettes.

    The 86-year-old country singer, who has been forced to cancel a number of concerts in recent years due to breathing problems, made the admission during an interview with KSAT TV’s Paul Venema.

    "I don’t smoke anymore – take better care of myself,” Nelson said. “I have abused my lungs quite a bit in the past, so breathing is a little more difficult these days and I have to be careful.

    “I started smoking cedar bark, went from that to cigarettes to whatever, and that almost killed me.”

    In an interview with Rolling Stone earlier this year, Nelson said he has smoked pot for at least 65 years and he is high “pretty much all the time.” He also touted the benefits of marijuana.

    “I’m kind of the canary in the mine, if people are wondering what happens if you smoke that s**t a long time," he said. "You know, if I start jerking or shaking or something, don’t give me no more weed. But as long as I’m all right ...”

    This article has been updated since it was first published.