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Quitting tobacco is hard, though not impossible. People and smokers often try to quit, but they don’t succeed. So it’s essential to shun tobacco at the earliest. According to a report, smoking and tobacco consumption continue to remain the number one reason behind the nation’s cancer disease burden each year.
Over the last few decades, there has been some decline in smoking habits among people, but in absolute terms, it’s still too high. Approximately 11% of Australians are daily smokers. It means over two million people in the country are addicted to tobacco and are habitual smokers.
Unfortunately, despite the government’s best efforts to enhance people’s awareness about the ill effects of smoking and tobacco consumption, the gross revenue from the Cigarette segment in Australia is likely to cross the $11 billion figure by this year-end. It’s indeed a worrisome sign!
Before moving further, it’s important to identify the reasons that prevent people from quitting tobacco.
Anxiety Relief
Some people feel smoking makes them stress-free. They feel smoking keeps them occupied and miles away from anxiety. But reality says something else. Smoking can elevate stress and anxiety while making the person more susceptible to depression and other mental illnesses.
Scared of Withdrawal Symptoms
Many smokers want to quit but are scared of withdrawal symptoms. Initially, a person may feel anxiety, headaches, and nausea on quitting tobacco, but eventually, it will benefit their health. The withdrawal symptoms are temporary and will go away on their own. So there’s nothing to fear about it.
Apprehension About Body Fat
Many smokers feel that they might gain weight by leaving tobacco. But it’s only a half-baked truth. Smoking is not just bad for your mental health and lungs but also for your heart. Tobacco consumption is one of the key reasons behind diabetes, cancer, neurological disorder, and other body ailments.
It might speed up the calorie-burning process, but that’s nothing when you count out its ill impacts on one’s overall health. Quitting tobacco is one of the best decisions in life. As far as weight control is concerned, you can join a gym or hire a fitness instructor to lead a fit and healthy life.
Ways to Go Tobacco Free
Smoking tobacco is not as difficult as people and other smokers perceive it. However, a smoker should have the willpower to say no to tobacco and move forward. Things can seem difficult initially, but it will get easier as time ticks on.
Take the First Step
Deciding when to quit smoking is the first step towards de-addiction. Next, the person should understand the health risks associated with smoking.
There is absolutely no point in harming the lung, heart, and other organs for the sake of smoking. An addicted person can also reach out to a qualified doctor to learn more about it.
Throw Away All Cigarettes
The person deciding to quit tobacco should throw away lighters, ashtrays, or any unused cigarettes from their home. If someone else smokes a cigarette in the house, ask them to smoke outside. Don’t forget that passive smoking is as bad as normal smoking.
Nicotine Therapies
In the last few years, several smokers have gone through Nicotine Therapies to quit smoking. It helped them a lot. The process is simple. Go to https://smartstop.com.au/ and check the prescription and non-prescription therapy options available. Then, instead of tobacco, smokers can use nicotine vaping products or buy non-nicotine e-cigarettes, which don’t contain any tobacco and harmful compounds.
Consult A Doctor
Get in touch with a doctor as early as possible. After a thorough consultation with the patient, the doctor may suggest Bupropion and Varenicline to help the smoker cope with the nicotine withdrawal symptoms. However, these medications may lead to some side effects and therefore need to be taken as per the dosage recommended by the doctor.
Conclusion
The person going through the de-addiction phase needs to remain calm and relaxed all the time. Even a slight elevation in the level of stress or anxiety can trigger their urge to smoke. Support from the near and dear ones is equally important.
It can reduce the inconveniences that smokers face during the de-addiction phase. Smokers should keep their minds busy with work, art, films, gardening, literature, and other hobbies.
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