Quitting Smoking: Does this European Study Yield the Most Effective Method?

“Why do you keep eating lollipops?” a confused me asked a former co-worker of mine. She’s been a smoker for well over 25 years and was making a huge effort to quit. She mimicked the motion of smoking by continuously popping a lollipop in her mouth instead.

smokingColin Farrell had a very similar reaction when he was being interviewed for his role in the movie Alexander. As a result of the movie being extremely unpopular in theaters, Farrell was incredibly uneasy during the interview. He kept insisting one thing: he needed a cigarette, very badly. The interviewer detailed: “…he kept reaching for his mouth as if to remove a cigarette. He finally broke down and propped his left elbow up on the desk with two fingers pressed together, and pretended to smoke. Seeing this made me wonder if the behavior of smoking might be as addictive as the chemical gratification of lighting up.  Farrell kept his nerves from unraveling by mimicking the behavior, so at least a portion of his dependency must be behavioral.

Usage of tobacco is responsible for more than 5 million deaths per year worldwide and the unfortunate aspect of it all is that it’s a preventable death. However, anyone who’s addicted to Hot Cheetos or that one show on Netfix know very well how difficult it is to break any addictive habit. Now, times that addiction by at least 5. I’m sure that’s how bad smokers who are trying to quit have it. What did one European study yield in terms of a highly effective method of getting smokers to quit for good?

European Respiratory Journal published a study in 2011 that recommends smokers focus on the behavioral dependence of their addiction if they’re looking to successfully quit. Behavioral dependence means the constant hand motion that’s utilized when smoking a cigarette. Having an object, such as a lollipop or pen, in one’s mouth aids in the process of quitting.

120 smokers were studied in Europe by researchers. These 120 participants were divided in two groups: one group received a fake cigarette without any nicotine in it and the other group followed a one-size-fits-all “quit smoking” program (an anti-smoking nicotine patch or gum). Prior to being split into two groups, the participants were asked numerous of questions in regards to determining their physical and behavioral dependence on cigarettes.

e cigNear the 6 month mark, the group who were given the fake cigarettes had an altogether quit rate of 67%, while the group who followed the standard quit smoking program had a quit rate of 19%. That’s a HUGE difference.

It appears, at least for some people, e-cigarettes (aka fake cigarettes) are a viable method of quitting that looks comparable to, if not better than, traditional nicotine replacement therapy,” said Dr. Michael Siegel, a professor of community health sciences at Boston University School of Public Health, who had no part in the study.

Are you a smoker who’s trying to quit? What’s the hardest aspect that you’re currently trying to overcome with quitting? Do you know anyone who’s a former smoker? What method did they utilize that proved successful?

Xoxo,

Chrissy

http://www.salon.com/topic/smoking/

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/neuronarrative/201112/ten-impressive-psychology-studies-2011

http://www.forbes.com/sites/daviddisalvo/2011/06/06/why-fake-cigarettes-help-some-quit-its-a-behavior-thing/

http://health.howstuffworks.com/wellness/smoking-cessation/e-cigarettes-help-stop-smoking.htm

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/23714335509132176/

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  1. Nothing works except for going lighter to a good alternative. After 6 months go on Champix tablet program. You can continue smoking the lighter brand still enjoy your coffee or tea and amazingly you will within a month be on less than one sig. I have been smoking for 40 years, pipe, cigars, and cigarettes. So I have good understanding how hard it is to stop. I do not advertise champix as a product. It is that the other meds didn’t work. Forget about any of the natural stuff and please stay away from so called medical marijuana. Instead of addicted to tobacco you will get addicted to the hippie craze.

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