The World Health Organization reveals that smoking tobacco causes the death of about five million people annually. Despite active education about the dreadful ramifications of smoking, about 22% of Americans are smokers. Surveys reveal that 80% of smokers want to quit. But, only about five percent manage to quit smoking as nicotine in tobacco is highly addictive. This article details why it is so hard for smokers to quit their deadly habit.
Nicotine is Very Addictive
Nicotine enters the brain and stimulates pleasure centers. Smokers thus get a high from smoking. When they try to quit, they experience withdrawal symptoms. To stop these symptoms, the smoker resumes his habit again. These withdrawal symptoms vary from person to person.
Nicotine Withdrawal Symptoms
A few nicotine withdrawal symptoms are mentioned below:
- Sore gums and tongue
- Sore throat
- Chest tightness and cough
- Headache
- Difficulty in trying to concentrate
- Fatigue
- Sleep problems
- Irritability
- Craving for cigarettes
- Flu-like discomfort and aches
Psychological Cues of Smoking
There are many social and behavioral aspects that are connected with smoking. Smokers closely link daily activities with smoking. These include trying to get stress relief, trying to relax, when on a break, while drinking alcohol, when socializing with buddies, after a meal, etc. These psychosocial and behavioral connections to smoking can also be difficult to overcome.
Genetic Effect on Smoking
Genetics has been found to affect numerous health issues. Research reveals that there is an immense genetic effect on smokers. Genetics impacts different smoking aspects, such as the urge to smoke, continuing smoking, etc. This may explain the varying attitudes of regular and non-regular smokers to cigarettes and smoking in general.
Summing Up
The above factors clearly explain why quitting smoking is hard despite the availability of behavioral methods and anti-smoking medications. Besides, the relapse rate is also quite high. The initial few weeks of quitting smoking are the hardest. A smoking quitter starts to feel more comfortable only after about 10 to 12 weeks of non-smoking. To sum up, quitting smoking is not easy. But, it is worth the effort due to the immense benefits of a tobacco-free life.
