6 ways to help yourself quit smoking

Smoking is dangerous to your health. Whether you're a smoker or not, you've probably heard that hundreds of times before. But there's quite a bit of truth to those words, and if you're trying to quit smoking the information below can help.

You may already know that smoking cigarettes elevates your heart rate, raises your blood pressure, increases the clotting factors in your blood, depletes good high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, increases dangerous triglycerides and damages the linings of your blood vessels.

But that's not even considering its role in related vascular disease such as stroke and impotence, as well as lung diseases like chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

Each inhalation from a cigarette introduces more than 4,000 chemicals into your bloodstream, of which 50 are known to cause cancer in the long term. Each puff also contains two potent poisons — nicotine and carbon monoxide; together they create a burden greater than most hearts can bear.

But, while most of the news surrounding tobacco use is grim, there is a silver lining. If you quit now, you can stop those harmful effects in their tracks and even eventually reverse the damage smoking causes. No matter how long you've smoked, your risk of a heart attack decreases just 24 hours after you give up.

After a year, your risk of tobacco-related heart disease is half that of a smoker's, and 15 years after you crush your last stub, your risk drops to the level of someone who has never smoked. Here's what you need to know in order to quit.

1. It takes inspiration. 

Think about the happy events that you would miss if your life were cut short by 10 or 15 years. The birth of a grandchild? A grandchild's wedding? Consider everyone who is close to you — family and your best friends. Whom will you miss, or who will miss you most, if you die more than a decade prematurely? Give up smoking for them.

2. Your doctor can help. 

It may be perfectly legal, but tobacco is as addictive as illegal street drugs such as cocaine or heroin. It can take two or three tries, or more, to quit for good. Involving your doctor improves your chances. Studies have shown that about 70 percent of smokers want to quit and that those who have the support of their health care providers are most successful.

But don't count on your doctor to broach this sensitive subject. Only half of smokers who see physicians have ever been urged to quit, according to surveys. Take the initiative. Tell your doctor you want to quit and ask for help.

3. Try nicotine replacement. 

People often find using nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) during the initial adjustment period helpful. Nicotine replacement products include gum, patches, lozenges, inhalers and nasal sprays, and are available both on prescription and over-the-counter.

4. Switching to "lights" rarely works. 

Swapping to "lighter" cigarettes will not protect your health or help you to quit. People tend to puff harder, longer and more often on lights to get the desired nicotine hit. Smoking cigars or a pipe is a poor strategy, too: you still absorb nicotine into your bloodstream and probably still inhale at least some of every puff.

5. Exercise does help. 

Regular exercise can burn off stress hormones and help you to stop smoking. Burning off these hormones makes you feel less of an urge to smoke, and produces feel-good brain chemicals that can help to reduce the uncomfortable effects of nicotine withdrawal.

6. Avoid bad influences. 

Spending time with smokers not only makes it harder to quit because of the ever-present temptation, it also harms your heart to breathe the air they pollute.

Keep this information and advice in mind to help yourself quit smoking.