Tobacco smoking has become a problem for a large number of people. Most often people aged 25-40 suffer from this addiction. The desire to be your own in the company, a false idea about the steepness of smoking, the myths that cigarettes calm the nerves and prevent you from gaining excess weight - these and other reasons make a teenager or adult poison themselves with tobacco products.
Some people want to quit smoking but lack willpower or little information on really effective methods for getting rid of nicotine addiction. Few people turn to a narcologist, considering this problem trivial or insoluble.
This article outlines the most effective ways to start a healthy lifestyle by quitting smoking on your own.
Harm of nicotine to the body
7 million people die from the effects of smoking every year. Not only traditional cigarettes, but also their counterparts: vaping, chewing tobacco, hookah, electronic cigarettes, snus and so on are harmful to the body. Passive smoking is no less dangerous. This is when a person stands close to the smoker and inhales the smoke. It is believed that in this way a person gets even more carcinogenic substances than the smoker himself.
The most formidable disease that is directly related to tobacco consumption is lung cancer. It takes 250, 000 lives annually. If you smoke from a young age or 20 cigarettes a day, then the risk of dying at the age of 35-65 doubles. The addiction negatively affects all organs, including the unborn baby of a pregnant woman smoking. She may have a miscarriage, a premature or abnormal baby. Bad habits are dangerous for the elderly by the development of circulatory disorders and cataracts. Passive smokers are also at risk, especially children. They develop diseases such as bronchitis, pneumonia, asthma. The fetus, which is in the womb of a smoking mother, also receives toxic substances. In the future, he may suffer from SIDS - Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
If a teenager starts smoking, then in the future he may develop a craving for heavier drugs. Low-income, uneducated, nervous young people are at risk.
The main substance in a cigarette that causes the most damage to the body is nicotine. He is able to penetrate even chromosomes and cause their mutations. If such a mutation occurs in the germ cell, the future offspring will suffer, since many of them will be with birth defects.
Nicotine begins its path in our body from the mouth, then enters the lungs. From there, through the alveoli, it enters the bloodstream. After the first puff, this dangerous substance appears in the tissues of the nervous system within 8 seconds. The concentration of this substance in the blood remains high for another 30 minutes. Vital organs take the blow: liver, kidneys and lungs.
First, the cells of the central nervous system are excited, then - their oppression. Therefore, the person needs to smoke again. One cigarette contains 2 mg of nicotine, and a smoker needs 20 mg to meet his needs. The person receives a short-term stimulating effect and does not think about the dire consequences. There is no benefit from smoking, only harm. Blood clots and atherosclerotic plaques are formed from nicotine. All this leads to heart attacks, strokes.
Nicotine is addictive. Therefore, it is difficult for an experienced smoker to survive the withdrawal syndrome: irritability, insomnia, headache, fatigue. All this can last up to 2 weeks. The cigarette serves as a kind of entertainment for addicts. If they decide to quit smoking, they often do not know how to fill their free time and how to stimulate the brain.
Some people do not become addicted to tobacco because the body rejects nicotine. At the very first puff, nausea and vomiting occur. If these symptoms are not ignored, then there is an aversion to cigarettes. Others remember “pleasant” sensations in the form of relaxation, excitement, loss of appetite and continue to smoke.
In any case, the ingestion of nicotine in the body does not go unnoticed. Diseases of one or more organs will occur. Even bone tissue softens and osteoporosis occurs. The voice of smokers becomes low and hoarse, a chronic cough appears. Constant pain in the stomach is also the effect of nicotine on the gastrointestinal tract.
Cigarettes and their analogues contain other harmful impurities that cause no less damage to the body. Acetoin causes diseases in the digestive tract and lungs. Diacetyl is used as a flavoring agent and causes chronic bronchitis. Acetylacetone is intended for the chemical industry. Using it internally harms the entire body. In addition to nicotine, several dozen other impurities are present in cigarette smoke, including heavy metals (lead, bismuth, polonium), poisons (hydrocyanic acid, cyanide, arsenic, formaldehyde) and others. Some of them can build up in the body, slowly poisoning it.
A person who smokes is easily recognizable by yellow teeth, characteristic odor from the mouth, unhealthy face skin, red eyes. If you look at his lungs, it will be a black rotten mass.
Anyone who thinks about their health or those around them should quit smoking. Yes, this is not easy, because addiction develops quickly, but it is possible with certain efforts of will. To do this, below are the ways that should help you get rid of a bad habit.
Ways to Quit Cigarettes at Home
A strong man or strong-willed woman will one day decide to quit smoking for good. The man smokes the last cigarette and no longer touches tobacco. The support of loved ones and the desire of the addict are important here. You can reward yourself for giving up a bad habit. For example, with the money that went to cigarettes, buy something nice.
If a person quits smoking, then he needs substitutes. Such products can be seeds, lollipops, sandwiches, nuts. Naturally, all food should be consumed in reasonable amounts so as not to gain excess weight or high sugar.
It is impossible to imagine a healthy lifestyle without sports. Therefore, you should try to devote all your energy and free time to useful exercises. Now a set of workouts is available for everyone, for example, as an application on a smartphone.
If you can't stop using tobacco right away, you can reduce the dose day after day. At the same time, relatives should provide maximum assistance: do not stress, do not bother once again, do not remind about cigarettes. A person should have an incentive for a healthy lifestyle. Someone will want to live longer and without diseases, others will feel sorry for finances, because the prices for tobacco products are growing, others will think about their loved ones, who also receive toxic substances.
Smokers who want to quit smoking will find it helpful to read Allen Carr's book The Easy Way to Quit Smoking. It contains the author's own methods. The main idea is to get rid of fear and act decisively.
Proven Traditional Anti-Smoking Techniques
Bird cherry
Collect bird cherry twigs before flowering. Cut them into the size of a match. If you wish to smoke, take one stick of bird cherry and chew it. Then spit out this mass. The substances that are in the bird cherry produce a dislike for the taste of cigarettes. Apply this method for 7-10 days and the urge to smoke will pass.
Calamus Root
Calamus roots have a similar effect. You can buy from the pharmacy. This product can be swallowed instead of spitting out. After the course, there should be an aversion to cigarettes.
Rinse solution
If you don't want to chew, you can simply rinse with the following solution: take calamus rhizome and peppermint in a 6: 3 ratio. Pour one tablespoon of the mixture into a glass of boiling water and insist. Rinse your mouth whenever you feel like smoking.
Another gargle solution: 5 parts wormwood, 2. 5 parts yarrow, 2. 5 parts licorice root. Pour one tablespoon of the mixture with a glass of boiling water and leave for 2 hours, then strain.
Herbal teas
Herbal teas can be used to calm and detoxify. Ingredients for preparation can be of own collection or pharmacy.
Recipe one:
4 parts hawthorn flowers, 2 parts valerian, 2 parts peppermint, 2 parts motherwort. Pour 0. 5 liters of boiled water over 3 tablespoons of the mixture and leave for 3 hours. Drink half a glass of infusion 3 times a day. Tea has a calming effect, has a positive effect on the work of the heart.
Recipe two:
4 parts marshmallow root, 4 parts mother-and-stepmother leaves, 2 parts oregano. Pour 0. 5 l of boiling water over 3 tablespoons of the collection, leave for 2 hours. Drink a third of a glass 3 times a day. The infusion soothes the nerves and cleanses the lungs.
Recipe three:
4 parts valerian, 2 parts cumin, 2 parts chamomile, 2 parts hops. Pour 0. 5 liters of boiling water over 2 tablespoons of the mixture and insist. If it is a thermos, the tea will be richer. After 2 hours of infusion, strain and drink one glass at night. This tea relieves nervous tension, helps to sleep well.
Effective medical methods to combat cigarette addiction
Ideally, every person who decides to quit smoking should see a psychiatrist-narcologist. The doctor will provide medical assistance, which consists in the selection of drugs and psychological counseling. In especially severe cases, coding is used.
In pharmacies there are products that are sold in the public domain and are designed to help get rid of the addiction. You need to follow the instructions clearly so that there are no side effects.
Pills
There are drugs that block nicotinic receptors, helping the body to wean off the poison faster. For example, drugs with nicotine should be taken only after consulting a doctor, contraindications are possible. After a short course of taking these pills, in the vast majority of cases, there is a complete withdrawal from cigarettes.
Modern smoking pills act on the brain and suppress the urge to smoke. Also relieves symptoms that occur with withdrawal.
Nicotine patches
Nicotine enters the body through the skin in small quantities. It will help those who have a hard time with addiction or cannot quit smoking at once. Subsequently, it is necessary to cancel the plasters themselves, thereby stopping the persecution of the body.
Smoking sprays
Contains the same substances as in cigarettes, but in a smaller dose. But a person weaned from the sight of cigarettes, then completely ceases to feel the need for them. In addition, sprays are expensive, which means that you will not get used to them. This is help at first.
Nicotine gum
Contains a small dose of nicotine. Due to the unpleasant taste, it is not addictive, and gradually a person begins to feel aversion to all tobacco products.
Electronic Cigarette
The only advantage of this method is that the environment is not poisoned by the smoker. A person inhales vapor with purified nicotine and thus avoids a sharp deterioration in health. Gradually, smoking periods should be reduced, then stopped altogether.
Hypnosis
When the reason lies more in the psychology of the smoker, then he may be offered hypnosis. This is one of the types of coding in which the patient is set to not smoke.
Output
If a person has found the strength and quit smoking without aids, then this is very good. The body will experience a shake-up, but there is nothing to worry about. Gradually, all vital functions will return to normal. When an experienced smoker cannot get rid of the disease himself, a qualified specialist will come to his aid. The course of treatment is absolutely safe, and the reward will be excellent health and long life.