Millions of Americans resolve to quit smoking each year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that 70% of American smokers want to quit. So why do so many people still smoke? Nicotine is a psychoactive drug present in tobacco that results in chemical dependence in most smokers, making it hard to quit. Smokers are addicted to nicotine. And smoking is an addiction that kills. CDC estimates that 443,000 U.S. deaths each year are caused by cigarette smoking.
Average annual number of deaths 2000–2004
(Source: CDC SAMMEC, MMWR 2008;57(45):1226–1228.)
The negative impact of smoking extends beyond the smoker. Children and other family members are affected when their parent becomes sick or dies from cancer, as seen in this video from the CDC:
So how do you quit and stay quit? The CDC offers these key tips:
1) Write down why you want to quit.
2) Get help. Nicotine substitution products and non-nicotine cessation medications can make quitting easier. Call 800-QUIT-NOW (Spanish: 855-335-3569) for free resources. Visit CDC’s Tips From Former Smokers. Your doctor or other health care provider is also a good source for help.
3) Set a quit date, and make a plan for how what you are going to do instead of smoking.
4) Be persistent. Quitting may require multiple attempts. Remember that more than half of all adult smokers in the U.S. have already quit.
Finally, remember that most people who succeed in staying off cigarettes quit cold turkey. If you make a plan, set a date, and prepare to quit for good, you can do it. It’s not easy, but if you want to quit badly enough you can kick the habit.
For more information see:
(1) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Quitting Smoking Among Adults—United States, 2001–2010. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 2011;60(44):1513–19
(2) U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. How Tobacco Smoke Causes Disease: The Biology and Behavioral Basis for Smoking-Attributable Disease: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2010
(3) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Quitting Smoking Among Adults—United States, 2001–2010. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report [serial online] 2011;60(44):1513–9
jp
Hello JP!
Love your blog!
For me, the #1 thing was to have the right reason to quit. It did take me several attempts to quit; but once I had the right reason I quit cold turkey.
Behavior modification is part of the process. When I had the urge to smoke, I chewed a piece of gum instead…and avoided others that smoked. Sometimes you can lose your friends over this HOT habit.
Hi, Alan, I am really glad you found a way to quit smoking early in your adult life. I know your family appreciates your health, and you are a good example for your children. Substituting healthy behaviors (such as exercise) seem to be one way to replace smoking; I have also heard of carrot sticks or celery sticks as a substitution. Thanks for sharing this accomplishment.