Most countries have been actively fighting smoking and promoting a healthy lifestyle for several years.
The ban on smoking in public places helps to motivate people to get rid of this addiction forever. However, for many heavy smokers, this is not an obstacle. While many of them are already looking for a way to stop smoking effectively and quickly on their own, this is good news. Unfortunately, scientists to date have not developed a method to stop smoking naturally without psychological distress, but have come close to making it as easy as possible to stop smoking.
Body needs
When smoking, the body lacks important trace elements and vitamins that need to be replaced, preferably in a complex way, but some food groups should receive special attention.
It has long been known that smokers excrete large amounts of vitamin C from the body, and nicotine helps to replace this, so when quitting smoking, attention should be paid to ingesting a sufficient amount of ascorbic acid. The diet should contain more foods that contain vitamin C - orange and lemon juice, currant, sea buckthorn, rosehips.
The desire to smoke is gradually decreasing, but it is worth paying attention to the functions of your body, as people with intestinal and stomach problems should not overdo it by taking ascorbic acid.
Don't forget the fact that after making the decision to quit smoking forever, it is advisable to exclude some foods from the diet. This includes products that contain caffeine - coffee, tea, coke. Only caffeine removes a large amount of nicotine from the body, and the body begins to demand replacement of the lost.
Bad habits
Alcohol also stimulates desire. Therefore, if you are determined to quit smoking, limit the use of alcoholic beverages and, in principle, it is better to refuse completely. The higher the degree of the drink, the greater the desire to receive a dose of nicotine.
Another important factor in the fight against addiction is the internal psychological attitude. Do self-hypnosis, analyze all the positive aspects of quitting smoking and the harmful effects of smoking on the body. This will be a good incentive for you to fight this harmful addiction.
It is important to note that not everyone can stop smoking on the first try - this is completely normal. This is almost always a long process of working on yourself. Don't give up and keep fighting for your health, you are doing it just for yourself and no one else.
13 practical tips to stop smoking effectively
Find the most important reason.
To be truly motivated, you need a strong and very personal reason. For example, unwillingness to harm the health of your loved ones by secondhand smoke. Or a lower risk of lung cancer and heart disease, even a desire to look and feel young and healthy. The main thing is to really want more than smoking.
Get ready before you stop smoking abruptly.
Just picking up and throwing away the last pack of cigarettes is not exactly the right way. This can lead to the so-called withdrawal syndrome, when an abrupt cessation of a particular addiction causes a deterioration in physical and mental health. It is prudent to consult a health professional first to learn how to mitigate the smoking cessation process.
Consider replacement therapy.
Of course, someone would like to think that all that is needed is willpower, but in fact, the physical dependence of the body can be much more influential. There are special medications in various forms, as well as techniques that will gradually reduce the amount of nicotine that enters the bloodstream, thereby reducing the side effects of smoking cessation, such as irritability, headaches and the like.
Find out about medications in advance.
Cigarettes seem like an easy joke. Those who smoked a pack a day may need medication to relieve symptoms after an abrupt withdrawal. This type of medicine should only be taken as directed by your doctor.
Be sure to support your loved ones.
Share your intention to quit smoking with your family. Affectionate words and understanding play an important role in everyone's life, because it is much easier to control yourself and ignore the urge to smoke a cigarette, if there is such an incentive. Love and support can be even more effective than prescription drugs.
Take a break.
Most smokers claim that cigarettes help them to relax. In fact, it is not so, just a break for smoking is assigned a rest time, which can be spent profitably and without cigarettes. Therefore, to stop smoking, it is necessary to reserve a period of relaxation. It doesn't matter what it is filled with - exercise, listening to music or massage. The main thing is to show yourself that rest is possible without delay.
Avoid coffee and alcohol in the beginning.
In the minds of many, cigarettes are associated with alcohol and breakfast. In order not to provoke and test your own resistance, it is better to take a break too. If smoking becomes a habit immediately after eating, then find an alternative - brushing your teeth or taking a short walk, for example.
Get rid of smoking reminders.
When you stop smoking, immediately clean your house of ashtrays, lighters and anything else that might remind you of cigarettes. Don't leave those little things in the car too. Everything must be clean and ventilated from the obsessive smell, otherwise the temptation will be too great to resist.
Try again and again if you fail.
Don't stop trying to quit if it doesn't work the first time. Analyze the situation in which you returned to smoking a cigarette and, next time, use this experience to prevent another nervous breakdown. Set a clear date for yourself when you will try to quit smoking again.
Move more and more actively.
Sports activities help to distract the thoughts of cigarettes, in addition, the hormones produced during them usually improve mood and body tone. And the result, visible externally, will be another motivation against smoking, which has nothing to do with the beauty and health of the body. If you can't play sports, then any physical activity will do - working in the garden or walking the dog, for example.
Eat more vegetables and fruits.
Under no circumstances diet when you stop smoking. Psychologically, it will be much more difficult to deal with if you deny yourself too much. To avoid weight gain when you quit smoking, simply replace your snacks with baked goods and sweets with fruits and vegetables.
Calculate your benefits.
In addition to the unconditional health benefits, quitting smoking is also profitable. Calculate exactly how much money you will save by not buying cigarettes, lighters and ashtrays. Separately, try to estimate how much work efficiency with a clear schedule will increase without constant outlets for a smoking break. Spend the money saved, finally saying goodbye to tobacco, on entertainment to reward yourself.
Remember, time is at stake.
Is it difficult to see exactly how healthy it will be to quit smoking? So, maybe some numbers will help. It takes the body 20 minutes to normalize the heart rate after smoking. After a day without tobacco, the level of carbon monoxide in the blood will return to acceptable levels. After 2-3 weeks of quitting smoking, the risk of heart attack begins to decrease. And in the long run - getting rid of Damocles' lung cancer sword.
We hope you make the right decision in time, and our article will help you decide how to quit smoking quickly and effectively. Be healthy!