Stop Smoking

Cigarette smoking is the most leading and preventable cause of death as well as serious illnesses around the world. A smoker is at a comparatively higher risk of dying from cancers of the lungs, throat or mouth and heart attack than a non-smoker. Quitting smoking is important to safeguard your health and it provides many benefits such as blood pressure becomes normal, breathing becomes easier and your sense of taste and smell improves. In other words, quitting smoking helps you live longer, healthier life.

Nicotine is a substance naturally present in the tobacco plant and is the cause for a person’s addiction to tobacco products, including cigarettes. Most people stop smoking by virtue of their strong will-power, but heavy smokers usually will need smoking cessation drugs which contain nicotine in small amounts.

Nicotine Replacement Therapy

Smoking cessation drugs with nicotine are also called nicotine substitution products or nicotine replacement therapy. These are approved by the Food and Drug Administration and are available as chewing gum (Nicorette), skin patch (Nicotrol, Nicoderm CQ, and Habitrol), nasal spray (Nicotrol NS), and inhaler (Nicotrol). The nasal spray and inhaler are prescription drugs, but the gum and the patch can be bought even without a prescription.

Other medications

Apart from the nicotine replacement therapies, other drugs are also used for quitting smoking. Bupropion (Zyban), an antidepressant medication also reduces craving and withdrawal symptoms. It helps to stop smoking by mimicking effects of tobacco on the brain. Buspirone (BuSpar) is a tranquilizer that helps smokers deal with anxiety after quitting smoking.

Varenicline (Chantix) is another prescription drug approved by the U.S. FDA used to quit smoking. Chantix helps by blocking nicotine from attaching to their receptors in the brain. It is taken seven days before the date you decide to quit smoking and can be continued up to 12 weeks.

Group or behavioral counseling

“Stop smoking” counseling programs help you gain lot of support and encouragement to help you handle the withdrawal symptoms. A combination of drug treatment and counseling can help to quit smoking successfully.

Tips for quitting smoking

Some of the tips mentioned below may help you quit smoking.

• Know the ways to quit – Adopt the method suitable for you
  
  
• Know why to quit – Understand why you need to quit smoking and benefits of not smoking; often remember them so that may inspire you to quit smoking
  
  
• Consider the harm – Understand the harm caused by smoking to you, your family, community and the earth. This may make you determined to quit smoking
  
  
• Stay away – Replace the things that provoke you to smoke with the things that inspire you not to smoke. This may have a positive effect on you to quit smoking
  
  
• Reward and get rewarded – Welcome the regards from your loved ones about your non smoking and also inspire your other smoking friends not to smoke