Any tool for kicking a smoking habit is a tool worth investigating. Sometimes it takes many strategies, combined together, to help someone start ignore nicotine cravings rather than fall victim to them.
A new study has revealed a way to help cut cravings that is so simple it is almost difficult to believe. But that is exactly what medical studies are for: to separate the contenders from the pretenders. UK researchers report that exercising just five to 10 minutes will significantly curb a nicotine craving in someone looking to quit smoking.
Five to ten minutes! This fraction of time is of course not a smoking cessation tool in itself, but rather can be used as an aid to help someone deal with withdrawal symptoms and fight the often-heavy urge to light up. This isn’t the first time exercise has come up in this context, but its effects on smoking is always overshadowed by its effects on weight loss.
Researchers investigated 14 studies in the past that were focused on how exercise affects the behavior of smokers, and withdrawal symptoms in those trying to cut down on the road to quitting. A dozen studies found that a short burst of exercise reduced nicotine cravings and even reduced withdrawal symptoms, when compared to not exercising at all.
A handful of studies found that exercising cut cravings as effectively as more commercial methods, such as nicotine chewing gum. One of the most telling statistics they unearthed was that exercise had the ability to triple the amount of time between cigarettes. So if you stayed inactive, and even chewed tobacco to get a fix, you still might have your next cigarette one hour later. But exercising would push that time span to three hours.
They proved as well that you don’t need to work out vigorously to achieve these effects. People who exercised hard for up to 40 minutes were successful in cutting cravings – but those who exercised for 15 minutes (and some for even five minutes), at a more leisurely pace, had significant success too.
So why does exercise work? Is it because it distracts people from smoking? That doesn’t seem right, because the cravings were reduced an hour after the workout. It’s more likely that exercise lifts the mood of a smoker, reduces stress, and adds to a healthy feeling. Whatever the main reason, any smoker looking to quit can incorporate exercise each day to help the difficult process of smoking cessation.
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