Making the informed decision to gradually start cutting out nicotine is definitely a step in the right direction, however, knowing exactly what the substance is doing to your body offers more of an incentive. Everyone seems to know that smoking is damaging to your health. While cutting down on your nicotine intake offers long-term benefits, if you smoke combustible cigarettes every day, this can prove to be challenging. That’s why it is important to formulate a plan and set a quit date, hopefully helping you see it through.
What is nicotine doing to your body?
When you smoke a combustible cigarette, the nicotine may help you feel calmer, offer you a temporary feeling of relaxation and even reduce your stress, anxiety and pain levels. However, nicotine is a highly addictive substance.
Although it may appear that the drug is a calm additive, it is actually considered to be a stimulant. When you inhale a cigarette, the nicotine courses through your body and causes it to release the hormone epinephrine, also known as a “fight or flight” hormone. Epinephrine activates your sympathetic nervous system, which makes you breathe more rapidly, leading to an increased heart rate and a rise in your blood pressure. Having been linked to hyperglycemia, nicotine also is known to cause insulin sensitivities, as well as an increased risk of developing metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes and even cardiovascular disease. It has the potential to affect your thyroid hormones, pituitary hormones, sex hormones and adrenal hormones. In other words, cutting out nicotine is crucial to the overall health of your body.
How do you cut it out successfully?
Successfully cutting out nicotine can be done using gradual reduction techniques rather than completely going cold turkey. Here are some tips that could help you get started:
- Set some goals: Make a plan to cut down your combustible cigarette intake daily, that way each week and even month you are smoking less.
- Continue to reduce your cigarette intake: Have a quit date in mind, however long that make take you, and make sure to target it as you reduce your cigarette intake.
- Integrate nicotine replacement therapies during this stage: Gum, the patch and e-cigarettes are popular methods that many people have used to successfully cut out nicotine. If you’re more addicted to the feeling, rather than the nicotine itself, try using a zero nicotine e-cig which will offer a similar sensation without the harmful, addictive chemicals.
- Change some habits: Naturally, you have developed a habitual routine around smoking. Whether you enjoy tobacco smoking in the morning with your coffee or taking smoke breaks at work, breaking this habit is a key element to cutting out nicotine. Eat something small or try going for a walk instead of having a cigarette or taking some deep, cleansing breaths whenever you have a craving.
- Tell your family & friends about your quit date: The more people know about your plans, the more support you will receive. Your family and friends care for you and telling them about your plan is one of the most important actions you can take to be successful.
Cutting out nicotine takes commitment and discipline, but with the right plan, enough support and the use of nicotine replacements, you will be well on your way to achieving your goal.
What steps did you take to successfully cut nicotine out of your life? Tell us all about it in the comments section below.
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