Cigarette smoking, and even smoking cigars or a pipe, is one of the greatest risk factors for a heart attack as well as for stroke, lung cancer, and emphysema.
Here are some tips to help you stop smoking:
* Set a quit date. Smoking cessation is most successful when it's done "cold turkey," not by slowly reducing the number of cigarettes smoked daily.
* Throw them out. Throw away all cigarettes and matches at home, in your car, and at work. Put away, or throw away, ashtrays and lighters.
* Share your goal. Tell your family and friends you're quitting and ask for their support.
* Avoid triggers. Avoid alcohol, coffee, and other triggers for smoking.
* Set a no-smoking policy. Do not allow anyone to smoke in your home or car, and avoid other people when they are smoking.
* Get tools. Take advantage of available stop-smoking aids, including nicotine replacements, drug therapy, and counseling. Less than one in 10 smokers is able to quit without some help. Nicotine gums, skin patches, and lozenges are available over the counter. Nicotine nasal sprays and inhalers require a prescription from your doctor. Don't smoke when using these products.
* Get a prescription. Bupropion (Zyban) and varenicline (Chantix) are two prescription-only medications that may help you quit. Start taking one of these drugs about one week before your quit date.
* Join a support group. Find a source of individual or group counseling. Counseling alone can be helpful, but it is particularly useful in combination with nicotine replacements or smoking-cessation drugs.
* Call the Quit Line. Call the National Cancer Institute Smoking Quit Line if you need more help. Their toll-free number is 1-877-44U-QUIT and there is more information online at http://www.smokefree.gov/.
Though these measures and help aids considerably boost your chances of quitting, there's a more than 50 percent chance that a smoker who quits will start again. I hope this doesn't happen to you, but if it does, don't give up! Announce another quit date and start stopping again.
