Most people know that smoking is extremely bad for their health, but quitting is far from easy. Most smokers who want to quit make several attempts and spend a lot of time and money looking for the secret weapon that will finally help them kick the habit. According to the American Cancer Society, there is no one miracle product that will help you quit smoking, but developing a personal cessation program is the best way to achieve success.

Chosing a Cessation Program

Information printed by tobaccofree.org states that without some kind of program, 95 percent of all smokers who try to quit fail to break their dependence on tobacco. While no single program can claim to be the best for every person, having some type of program to follow may be the key to success. Consider nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) such as nicotine gum and patches. With NRT, the smoker slowly cuts down the frequency of smoking without suffering the full effects of nicotine withdrawal. Prescription medications are a relatively new smoking cessation option. Pharmaceuticals such as Zyban diminish the craving and interest for smoking by altering the brain's chemistry. Aversion therapy in which the smoker self-administers a mild shock or other unpleasant sensation while smoking is shown to have an initial success rate of 95 percent. Once a popular method for smoking cessation, aversion therapy has become less well-known in lieu of other consumer-oriented methods. Psychological counseling helps smokers combat the mood swings and feelings of anxiety that can be caused by nicotine withdrawal. Hypnosis, acupuncture, yoga, meditation and other alternative therapies do not have scientific support to show they are effective smoking-cessation programs; however, people who have found these therapies to be helpful in the past should not hesitate to include them in their personal program. Support groups such as Nicotine Anonymous are helpful to those trying to quit smoking, especially when used in combination with another type of program. The American Cancer Society offers a quiz to help you decide which stop-smoking program is best for you. Visit the American Cancer Society online (see Resources for a link) for more information about smoking cessation.

Source:

TobaccoFree.org: Selected Quitting Resources

Bestwaytoreallyquitsmoking.com: The Best Way to Quit Smoking

WomenHealth.gov: Smoking and How to Quit

More Information:

American Cancer Society: Quiz--Do You Need Help to Quit?