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Quit Smoking?
You can read about all the different
effects that smoking has on your body in article Smoking. It tells you what vitamins to take to counteract the bad effects of
smoking.
You have two choices, you can make sure that you get enough supplements
to combat the different ways that smoking can deplete the body of needed
nutrients, or you can quit.
In case you need some more convincing read
10
Reasons to Quit
If you decide to quit, we've collected up all the helpful hints we
could find form other smokers who have quit. We've also listed
what supplements you can take to help you get over the withdrawal and get
your body back on tract.
Withdrawal:
The first problem is that smoking is addictive.
Here is some
information on why. Yes, the symptoms listed below are the result of
smoking.
Cravings:
Nicotine:
The most familiar and common problem is the craving.
Below is what happens, you can skip the below paragraph if you
want, but make sure you know it is the nicotine withdrawal
that is creating this.
Within seven seconds of inhaling on a cigarette, the nicotine reaches
your brain. The drug acts up "receptor cells" which
provide the "hit" that your body expects. This triggers
various responses in your body: your heartbeat and breathing rate go
up and your blood vessels contract. By the time you have finished
your cigarette, the nicotine level in your blood will have peaked.
Within one half hour, your body will have cleaned the nicotine out of the
blood stream. This spiking is part of what makes cigarettes so
addictive. The method of delivery, directly to the lungs and then to
the brain, and the intensity of its effects both help to make nicotine
extremely addictive. In the morning, most smokers inhale
deeply. The nicotine content in the blood has dropped overnight and they
are in withdrawal. In reality, smokers spend much of their
time in withdrawal: stress, anxiety and boredom are all heightened by daily withdrawal from
cigarettes. In between cigarettes, every smoker goes through a
smaller version of what the quitter goes through. Over the day, the
smoker will smoke enough cigarettes to maintain a sufficient nicotine
blood level to prevent these withdrawal symptoms. Usually the
minimum number to achieve this is 10-12 cigarettes a day, spaced over the
day. This explains why it is not usual for people to smoke less than half
a pack a day.
Nicotine acts as a vasoconstrictor, meaning it decreases the diameter of
your blood vessels, making it more difficult for blood to flow through the
body. This forces the heart to work harder and can lead to higher
blood pressure. It may be one of the reasons for increased
heart disease in long time smokers. An obvious sign of this is cold
or clammy hands, as the extremities do not receive as much blood.
Difficulty concentrating: As many people use nicotine to help
them focus, after a while this becomes a crutch. The increased blood
flow and oxygen resulting from not smoking can lead to a feeling of mental
fogginess. Some people report feeling that sounds are louder, or
being distracted by outside influences. Nicotine actually seems to
affect people's concentration by decreasing your peripheral vision and
hearing. You just didn't notice because of the numbing effect of
nicotine.
Fatigue: Nicotine increases your metabolism to an
abnormally high rate. When you stop smoking your metabolism drops back to
normal and you may find that your energy level drops.
Weight gain: Nicotine speeds up your metabolism. Essentially your
body runs at a faster than normal speed which will burn more
calories. When your metabolism reverts to normal, you may gain a few
pounds. Also food seems more appealing due to your re-awakened sense of
smell and taste, and it also provides an alternative to smoking.
There is supplementation to help this as well that will make you less
hungry in much the same way as a cigarette does. But, not everyone
who stops smoking gains weight. Remember, an increase in
weight may hurt your appearance, but smoking causes yellow teeth, bad
breath, stale clothing odors and possibly wrinkled skin. Exercise is
also an effective way to cope with withdrawal and avoid weigh gain.
Exercise increases your metabolism.
RECOMMENDED:
Getting Ready to Quit
- Be ready to taper off smoking while you build up your
body with nutrition.
Don't quit cold turkey.
- Notice when and why you smoke. See what things you often do
while smoking. (driving, with coffee in the morning, etc. etc.)
Find out how many cigarettes you smoke daily and when, so
you can figure out how you can cut down.
- You don't have to cut down drastically. Cut down
whatever doesn't create a big problem (we have supplements
to take as well - see below).
Beginning: THE GRADIENT APPROACH:
- Use less tobacco per day, one less cigarette.
- Use less tobacco each time. If you smoke longs, try regular.
Or try not finishing each cigarette.
- Inhaling less deeply.
- Switching to a lower tar/nicotine/carbon monoxide content tobacco
product.
Figure how you are going to reduce the number of
cigarettes you smoke daily. Stretch it out if
needed, but always go in the direction of smoking less so your
body becomes less dependent on those cigarettes.
Don'ts:
- Don't drink as much coffee or other caffeinated drinks. The caffeine
becomes more potent when you stop smoking. This can lead to
nervousness and the jitters.
While tapering:
- Try to exercise, take walks or ride a bike
- Think of the positive things about quitting.
- When you feel tense, try to keep busy.
- Eat regular meals. Feeling hungry is sometimes mistaken for
the desire to smoke.
- Start a money jar with the money you save by not buying cigarettes.
- Tell your friends for support.
- If you slip and smoke, don't be discouraged. Many former
smokers tried to stop several times before they finally succeeded.
What happens when you go to quit?
Increased appetite, especially for carbohydrates and sweets.
Increased coughing and sputum production, dry throat, nasal drip,
sweating, fatigue, muscle aches and cramps, constipation or diarrhea,
headache, hypersensitivity to stimuli, sleep disturbances, nausea, gas,
stomach pains, dizziness, tightness in the chest, tingling in the
hands and feet.
Some other symptoms can be: anger, boredom, feeling cooped
up, depression, frustration, irritability, grouchiness, lack of
concentration, loneliness, restlessness, increased aggressive thoughts and
behavior, decreased ability to tolerate stress or disruption, decreased
sex drive, & impaired work performance.
It takes at least 12
weeks for an ex-smoker to feel comfortable with his or her new way of life
as a non-smoker.
Ready to quit?
Instead of trying to use nicotine
patch or gum, or drugs try drinking fresh lime in ice water. Fresh Lime Juice?
A 2012 study titled Efficacy of fresh lime for smoking cessation
(click on the link to see the abstract) was published in the Journal of the Medical Association of
Thailand, and the conclusion was that fresh lime could be used in place of nicotine gum as an effective smoking cessation aid.
Supplements
There
are supplements that will help you get over the other withdrawal
problems and you should find out what those are.
Remember that the negative effects of smoking can be reduced and
repaired, the body has an amazing ability to repair itself given the
correct nutrients to do so.
Go here for help
Jim Harper's 3 Steps to
Quit Smoking Without Withdrawal: There is Hope. There is
a Solution.
“This book is an excellent method to help patients
quit smoking. Easy to read, 3 simple steps to take to
quit smoking cigarettes and if a patient is taking any
medication, the book gives the correct information on
how to avoid drug side effects when a patient quits
smoking. The chapter on craving or a habit helps
separate why each cigarette is being smoked during the
day and allows a patient to see they really only smoke
one-half of the time due to nicotine cravings. This book
is priceless.” Morten, M.D. “Most books like this do
nothing but tell stories, rely on the reader to be able
to just quit smoking or make some other magical decision
and no more smoking and no withdrawal. Jim Harper breaks
down smoking into individual parts and allows the reader
to achieve each step before proceeding to the next. If
you have ever had an airplane landing where you never
felt the decent and did not even feel the wheels touch
the runway, this is what stopping smoking with Jim
Harper’s method is like. Jim first pioneered this
reduction approach in 1999 for addictive prescription
drugs and the world is thankful he has tailored the same
approach for cigarette withdrawal. To quote Jim,
“There is Hope. There is a Solution.” Lance A.
Albright”
For more - Jim Harper's 3 Steps to Quit Smoking Without Withdrawal: There is Hope. There is a Solution.
RECOMMENDED: Replacement nutrition
Helpful Nutrition:
Diet: Fruits & vegetables. This is how the body gets antioxidants
naturally and will help to counteract the damage caused by smoking.
Research on Supplements:
Recently that has been some studies
done on the use of Rhodiola. Rhodiola is also known as golden root. This
is known to boost energy, and prevent infections. But, it may also help beat nicotine withdrawal.
Italian researchers found oral doses of rhodiola rosea extract helped prevent signs of nicotine withdrawal in mice. This included shaking, tremors, and chewing. And the more extract per kilogram of body weight, the better the results. You can find natural rhodiola extract supplements in health stores and online. Here
is the study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19939867
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