Stop Smoking Aids Alone Not As Effective As Complete Plan For Quitting

One of the first stop smoking aids was nicotine gum, which worked for some, but not for others. Most professionals now feel that you need a complete stop smoking treatment plan, beginning with a plan to quit.

Quitting is hard, something that anyone who has ever smoked on a regular basis knows. At one time, it was simply considered a habit, one that people should be able to kick. Now we know that the nicotine in cigarette smoke is addictive.

According to the American Heart Association, nicotine is one of the most addictive substances known. The addiction is comparable to cocaine or heroin addiction. So, if you smoke a pack a day or more, you are probably addicted.

Stop smoking aids such as the older nicotine gum and the newer nicotine patches are designed to replace the nicotine that your body craves and gradually reduce the amount that you need to prevent withdrawal symptoms. You could achieve the same effect by gradually reducing the number of cigarettes that you smoke per day. The most important part of any stop smoking treatment is the desire to quit.

If you are still thinking that you should quit, then you may not be ready to quit. As an ex-smoker, I know the physical pleasure that you associate with smoking a cigarette. There is a scientific reason for those feelings of pleasure.

Recently scientists have learned that when a person lights up, the nicotine reaches the brain in about 7 seconds. There, it increases the level of dopamine, a chemical that generates feelings of pleasure. In a sense, you are not addicted to nicotine; you are addicted to higher than normal levels of dopamine, just as you would be if you used cocaine, heroin or amphetamines.

However, dopamine, given as a drug, does not cross the blood-brain barrier, so there will never be stop smoking aids containing dopamine. They wouldnt work.

Substituting one addiction for another is not an appropriate stop smoking treatment, but you do need to find some other things that you really enjoy doing. It is particularly helpful if the things that you do cannot be done while smoking.

For example, physical activities, such as biking, hiking, running, swimming, tennis or anything else that you can think of, can be effective stop smoking aids. Not only because you cannot smoke while doing them, but also because your brain releases feel good chemicals similar to dopamine during strenuous physical activity.

For indoor activities, find things that require the use of both hands, such as knitting or even reading a paper back novel. Try to go places where smoking is prohibited, like the theatre or the library. These kinds of activities will not reduce the physical cravings, but they can help you break the smoking routine.

Patsy Hamilton was a health care professional for over twenty years before becoming a health writer. Currently she is writing a series of articles about quitting smoking. Read more at http://www.stop-smoking-blog.com

If you have physical withdrawal symptoms, such as trouble concentrating or sleeping, you may need some type of nicotine replacement for a complete stop smoking treatment plan, but remember that the patches and the gums can have negative side effects. The gum made me nauseous. The patch made my heart pound. It took me several months to final quit for good, but some of the newer stop smoking aids promise faster results. To learn more about them, please visit http://www.stop-smoking-blog.com

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