7 natural ways to kill nicotine cravings for anyone who is trying to quit smoking

We are all familiar with the fact that smoking is unhealthy. Nicotine is a very harmful substance which causes many problems, like lung damage and hypertension .Even if you quit smoking , you are still left with some damage. When you inhale the smoke, after 10 seconds the nicotine gets inside the skin, then the mucus in the nose, mouth and lungs too. Then the blood flow gets it and brings this to the brain.

Also, nicotine can cause insulin sensitivity and speed up the metabolic syndrome, heart issues and diabetes. It also affects the thyroid and pituitary glands.

Today there are 1.1 billion tobacco users in the world, and tobacco kills up to 50% of them (ASH). The CDC reports that smoking causes 90% of all lung cancer deaths in men and women. More than 10 times as many U.S. citizens have died prematurely from cigarette smoking than dying in wars fought by the United States during its history.

8 Ways to Quit Smoking

It is best if you are determined and stop smoking completely. Or you can start step by step by using  some of these methods and natural remedies:

Lime

When a craving hits, slicing up lime slices to suck on and then chewing the skin may be as effective as either 2 or 4 mg of nicotine gum.They are also rich in vitamin C (thought to help curb cravings) and antioxidants (Rungruanghiranya, Ekpanyaskul, Sakulisariyaporn, Watcharanat, & Akkalakulawas, 2012).However, it’s not as good as nicotine gum in reducing the number of cravings.

Acupuncture

The therapeutic mechanisms behind acupuncture are not thoroughly researched, however, it has been shown to help people quit smoking. It matters where the needles are placed. Acupuncture at points affecting the airways, lungs, and mouth can reduce cravings for the taste of tobacco, lowering the desire to smoke. After a month of acupuncture treatments every other week, participants experienced smoking cessation (He, Medbo, Hostmark, 2001).

Hypnotherapy

Defined as an altered state of consciousness where a person can bypass certain aspects of reality and feel compelled to follow cues from an outside source, hypnosis can help smokers associate cigarettes with unpleasant stimuli (e.g. dry mouth, poor health outcomes) and the belief they will lose the desire to smoke. Studies have shown it can accelerate the process of quitting but contributes less to long-term smoking cessation (Covino & Bottari, 2001).

Magnesium

Magnesium helps decrease nicotine addiction by antagonizing NMDA receptors, which are responsible for the dopamine (reward center) release. Magnesium may also decrease nicotine’s effect on NMDA receptors by enhancing GABA (our relaxing neurotransmitter) synthesis (then blocks glutamate formation, an excitatory neurotransmitter). Simply put, this mineral will lower the user’s satisfaction from smoking. Magnesium is fastest absorbed through powder, such as by NaturalCalm, or in Epsom salt baths (add lavender essential oil for extra relaxation)!

Nicotine patch

A long-time, popular way to help people quit smoking, the nicotine patch is known to have lasting effects. The nicotine patch has been shown to be more effective in combination with drugs like varenicline and bupropion, medications that also address nicotine addiction, than the patch alone (Koegelenberg, et al., 2014) (Jorenby, et al., 1999). One study demonstrated that a higher dose of 44-mg per patch may provide substantial short-term benefits for smokers (not a general starter dose), but produced more adverse effects than 22 mg, over a 4-week period. Doses were titrated in half after 2 weeks and combined with counseling, physician visits, and pamphlets (Jorenby, et. al, 1995). However, the dose of the patch is best determined by how much and how frequently one smokes.

Olfactory training

One study exposed smokers for one week to the smell of cigarettes and rotting eggs or fish while they are in stage 2, non-REM sleep (versus other stages of sleep), and the subjects reported smoking less over the course of the week (Azri, Holtzman, Samnon, Eshel, Harel, & Sobel, 2014).

Exercise

Five minutes of moderate-intensity exercise is associated with a short-term reduction in the desire to smoke and tobacco withdrawal symptoms, so brief bouts of exercise may aid in smoking cessation (Daniel, Cropley, Ussher, & West, 2004).

Mindfulness

Practicing to ‘sit’ through difficult scenarios, such as cravings or withdrawal symptoms, elicited beneficial outcomes on its own and is the strategy most likely to help users sustainably quit smoking (Brewer, et al., 2011).

Smoking is very harmful for your health, so try to quit smoking as soon as possible.

 

Source : theheartysoul.com