Learn more on smoking cessation

A majority of the population has developed the unhealthy habit of smoking, which is known to cause severe health complications. Even people who are in their teen ages have developed this unhealthy habit, which is more out of fashion. But little do these people know that showing themselves off as following a fashion trend, is actually making them a dead and a hollow person from inside. The nicotine content in one cigarette is so addictive that your brain becomes completely dependent on it. In the process it finds it difficult to deal with the stressful conditions that you go through, ultimately making it difficult for you to quit smoking. Ultimately,  all of your attempts at smoking cessation are overpowered by the urge to smoke or the cravings for nicotine. The major culprit that ends in failing all your attempts at smoking cessation is the continuous supply of nicotine, that your body has been receiving over time.

How can smoking prove to be harmful for your health?

Smoking on a continuous basis and for more than once in one single day, makes you addictive to nicotine that is present in a cigarette. With every puff, the addiction for the substance becomes stronger, and your brain becomes more and more dependent on the substance. Nicotine is so powerfully harmful a chemical, that it has the capacity to affect the structure and function of your brain. What nicotine does is that it gives you a feeling of calmness either instantly or within as long as 10 seconds, which is quite a welcoming feeling when you are stressed or depressed. Nicotine accomplishes this task by increasing the level of dopamine, which is actually responsible for carrying out the function of calming your nerves when you are stressed.

As dopamine is released in higher levels, you are able to experience immediate calmness and pleasure when you smoke. But as you stop smoking, the supply of nicotine, which brought about the increased production of dopamine, stops. You body then finds it difficult to cope with the normal level of dopamine in your body, as it does not provide that great a pleasure to you. And with time, your need or urge for that greater supply of nicotine increases, which is why you can have a relapse on quitting smoking. The cravings for a higher level of pleasure and relaxation become more aggravated and makes it difficult for you to quit smoking for a longer time.

A few tips to quit smoking

You can start quitting smoking by setting a particular date by which you plan to be completely free of your smoking habit. As quit smoking tips, you can consider using prescription medications such as Champix, which is quite a popular medication for smoking cessation. You are required to take this pill for up to 12 weeks once on a daily basis. You need to take 0.5 mg tablets for the first three days, followed by two 0.5 mg pills per day for the next four days. You then need to take 1 mg tablet twice a day for the rest of the 11 weeks. This pill contains varenicline as its active ingredient, which works by stimulating the nicotine receptors in your brain, reducing the risk of cravings and withdrawal symptoms you can experience. It also stops nicotine from acting on the nicotine receptors, so that you do not experience any pleasure while smoking.