Risk it all with smoking and tobacco.

“Smoking is one of the leading causes of preventable death globally. In the United States about 500,000 deaths per year are attributed to smoking-related diseases… Male and female smokers lose an average of 13.2 and 14.5 years of life, respectively. At least half of all lifelong smokers die earlier as a result of smoking.” from Wikipedia

Choosing not to smoke is one of the greatest steps a person is able to take to help prevent common diseases and medical conditions.

Image courtesy of CDC

Aside from health concerns, smoking makes you, your house, car, and clothes stink, it’s expensive and the cost is going up all the time, makes your teeth yellow, can interfere with your job, relationships, time management, money, makes exercise more difficult, the list goes on. Find your own reasons, they are the most powerful.

Tried and True Tips to Help you Quit:

• Pick a quit date and sticking with it

• Tapering down smoking less and less until your quit date

• Don’t buy or carry cigarettes after you have quit!

• Nicotine replacement such as the patch, or gum are proven. Use as directed

• Find alternatives to keep your  hands and mouth busy if you have a craving. Known alternatives include chewing gum, toothpicks, mints, carrot or celery sticks, etc.

• Tell friends and family about your plans to quit and ask for support

• Make a list of personal reasons to quit

After quitting, nicotine is out of the body after 3 days and physical cravings should be gone at this point. After 3 days, difficult psychological cravings can still occur. You may be challenged by situations when you had a routine of smoking in the past such as after a meal, first thing in the morning, when drinking coffee or alcohol, spending time with friends who smoke, breaks at work, driving in the car, a stressful situation, etc. It can be a big help to think about these situations ahead of time and make a plan to help you overcome the cravings.

For assistance in quitting, browse our Merchant Directory to seek help from one of our expert quit smoking services.

Author: Tony Montijo, BS Kinesiology, CPT, CES