Dec. 31, 2025 | Are you one of the millions of Americans who made a New Year’s resolution this year to give up smoking? According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, roughly 34 million people in this country currently smoke cigarettes, while 16 million live with a smoking-related disease. An estimated 480,000 Americans die from smoking each year, that’s nearly one in five deaths. Quitting smoking can add as much as a decade to your life expectancy and reduce your risk of many adverse health effects, including reproductive health outcomes, cardiovascular diseases, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and a dozen types of cancer. And consider this. Quitting can reduce the financial burden smoking places on you, your family and our health care systems, not to mention the nation, with smoking-related death and disease costing the United States more than 300 billion dollars every year.

Dec. 31, 2025 | Tobacco use is the most common preventable cause of death. The more years you smoke and the more cigarettes you smoke each day, the higher your risk. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in 2022 that more than 67 percent of adults in the U.S. who smoked said they wanted to give up the habit. However, less than one in 10 adults who smoke cigarettes succeed in quitting each year. Tobacco use can lead to tobacco dependence and serious health problems. Quitting smoking greatly reduces the risk of developing smoking-related diseases. Tobacco dependence is a condition driven by addiction to nicotine. It often requires multiple tries to quit successfully, but there are helpful treatments and resources for quitting. People who smoke can and do quit smoking for good. In fact, since 2002, there have been more people who used to smoke than people who currently smoke.

Dec. 31, 2025 | There are several proven ways to successfully give up smoking. Many choose the smoking reduction route, slowly reducing the number of cigarettes they smoke each day or simply giving up altogether. When you stop or cut back on smoking, you may have short-term effects such as irritability, anxiety, moodiness, weight gain, or trouble sleeping. These are called withdrawal symptoms. You can work with your provider to help reduce these symptoms and find the best way for you to quit. When smokers do not quit completely but smoke fewer cigarettes, they may still benefit. The more you smoke, the higher your risk of lung cancer and other cancers related to smoking. Smoking less is not as helpful as quitting altogether and is harmful if you inhale more deeply or smoke more of each cigarette to try to control nicotine cravings. Studies show that smokers who cut back are more likely to stop smoking in the future.

Dec. 31, 2025 | Smokers who undergo even a short counseling session with a health care professional have been shown to be more likely to quit smoking. A doctor can talk to you about your smoking habit as well as help you determine how willing you are to quit. They can also provide you with self-help materials along with recommending any drug treatment. Using a nicotine replacement product can help break the addiction to nicotine. It lessens the side effects of nicotine withdrawal, such as feeling depressed or nervous or having trouble sleeping. Other medications that do not have nicotine in them include bupropion, known commercially as Zyban, and varenicline, or Chantix. Bupropion works as an antidepressant that boosts dopamine and norepinephrine reuptake, helping reduce cravings, while varenicline is a partial nicotine receptor agonist, directly blocking receptors to reduce pleasure from smoking and withdrawal.

Dec. 31, 2025 | If you’re having difficulty trying to quit smoking cigarettes, here are some tips to help you eliminate your cravings. First, create a tobacco-free environment around you. Spend as much free time as you can in public places like libraries, stores, museums, and churches where tobacco products aren’t allowed. Stay away from activities, people, and places you link with using tobacco and don’t drink alcohol, coffee, or any other drinks you link with smoking. Stay away from foods that trigger cravings to use tobacco. Then practice self-care to ease your stress and cravings. Eat four to six small meals during the day. This keeps your blood sugar levels steady, your energy balanced, and helps prevent the urge to smoke. Drink water, eat well, and get enough sleep. This might help you have the energy you need to handle extra stress. And take deep breaths to relax. Just picture your lungs filling with fresh, clean air.