13. HOW TO QUIT SMOKING – METHOD 2

Making smokers quit the habit is not an easy task. Of the four out of 10 who attempt to do so a high percentage goes back to smoking after their initial attempts fail.

However, those who succeed are characterized by persistence in trying to quit - these are the individuals who mount attempt after attempt before they are finally able to drop smoking permanently. And for good reason: heart disease and lung-cancer deaths claim the lives of over 100,000 smokers each in the US every year. Smokers are twice as likely to have a heart attack compared to nonsmokers, and are more likely to die from it than their counterparts.

Following the US surgeon general's initial warning in 1964 about the health impact of smoking, over 45 million smokers have already dropped the habit. A decline in social acceptance, higher tobacco product prices and greater knowledge of the ill effects are continuing to make cigarettes less popular over the last few years.

Since nicotine is the one addictive element in cigarettes that makes it hard to quit, recognition of this psychoactive drug's effect will help a smoker overcome physiological barriers to quitting. Irritability, depression and other withdrawal symptoms will emerge, although they usually are strong only over the first few days an individual stops smoking, and eventually diminish as more days pass without the smoker lighting up.

The craving for nicotine can be addressed by using nicotine patches, nicotine gum, nasal sprays and other similar smoking cessation products. These aids help a quitter increase the likelihood of success in completely turning away from the habit.

Smoking is usually built into the daily routine of an individual. Changing one's routine then can also help the quitting process. As an example: someone who smokes during a mid-afternoon break can choose to change the time the break is taken. For those who smoke after a cup of coffee, changing to tea or any other beverage could help eliminate smoking. This change of habit could be long-term, but consciously doing so may help a smoker advance attempts to quit.

Many successful quitters say they could not have done so without outside help. Family, friends and even co-employees are often strong sources of moral support, particularly those who have also gone through the process. For more long-term or heavy smokers, they may need to consult psychotherapists and other health services providers or attend non-smoking clinics to help them manage the transition.

Smoking-cessation facilitator Saundra Mucker of the Park DuValle Community Health Center in Louisville, KY notes that such help should not be preachy or imposing, as this could instead make a potential quitter decide to give up the program and continue smoking. Once an individual has decided on quitting, Mucker adds that "total, unconditional support" is needed.

University of Louisville Pharmacology and Toxicology Associate Professor Steven Myers shares that view, and adds that education on both regular and second-hand smoking remains the main approach to encourage an individual to quit.

The government also cites other reasons for quitting on its Smokefree.gov site, including an improved sense of taste and smell, personal savings, fresher breath and easier breathing. Other providers of both telephone and internet-based assistance include the American Lung Association, the National Network of Tobacco Cessation, the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association and the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion.

Ex-smokers now surpass the number of current smokers in the US, as bans on public smoking offer individuals more incentive to quit. In addition, smokers have also been influenced to quit permanently or cut down amid greater focus among legislators and policymakers to implement more measures to shield nonsmokers from the risks of smoking.

The Journal of the American Medical Association has included in its September 28 edition findings of a Denmark-based study that simply cutting down on cigarette use also helps lower the risk of lung cancer even for heavy smokers. Copenhagen University Hospital's Dr. Nina S. Godtfredsen and her team's 31-year research into the link between lung cancer and reduced smoking found that bringing down daily cigarette consumption from about 20 sticks to below ten helped effect a 27% drop in cancer risk compared to a group that maintained the habit.

For long-term and consistent ex-smokers, risk of the disease was 83% below that of their heavy smoking counterparts, while non-smokers exhibited even less risk of contracting lung cancer. Light smokers, or those consuming 9 sticks a day on average, reduced their risk by 56%. However, those who permanently quit saw their risk fall 50% compared to heavy smokers.