Smoking and Weight Loss

Heavy smokers and people who have smoked for a long time often gain a few pounds after they quit smoking. Unfortunately, smokers often use this fact to justify continuing to smoke. But this weight gain isn't inevitable.

Weight gain can be avoided by eating less and/or exercising more. And if you're making poor food choices now, simply eating healthier foods can do the trick.

Here are some of the reasons why quitting smoking causes people to gain weight:

• Smoking increases your metabolism, the rate at which you burn calories. So quitting smoking will cause your metabolism to decrease a little to its normal rate.
• People who quit smoking are inclined to eat more because they reach for snacks as a substitute for cigarettes.
• People who quit smoking are inclined to eat more because food tastes better!

Quitting smoking is difficult enough without the fear of gaining weight. The primary reason that people gain weight when they quit smoking is that they tend to eat more, and you can control that. If you can keep from turning to food in place of cigarettes, and make a few adjustments to your eating and exercise habits, you won't have to gain any weight at all.

You know that smoking is bad for you. Now read what the American Lung Associationsays will happen when you quit smoking:

After 20 minutes:

• Your blood pressure will decrease.
• Your heart rate will decrease.
• The temperature of your hands and feet will increase.

After 8 hours:

• The level of carbon monoxide in your blood will drop to normal.
• The level of oxygen in your blood will increase to normal.

After 24 hours:

• Your chance of heart attack will decrease.

After 48 hours:

• Your nerve endings will start to regrow.
• Your ability to smell and taste will improve.

After 2 weeks to 3 months:

• Your circulation will improve.
• Your lung function will improve.
• Aerobic activity (e.g., walking) will become easier.

After 1 to 9 months:

• Symptoms including coughing, sinus congestion, fatigue, and shortness of breath will decrease.

After 1 year:

• Excess risk of coronary heart disease will decrease to half that of a smoker.

After 5 to 15 years:

• Risk of stroke will decrease to that of people who have never smoked.

After 10 years:

• Risk of lung cancer will decrease to half that of continuing smokers.
• Risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, kidney, and pancreas will decrease.
• Risk of ulcers will decrease.

After 15 years:

• Risk of coronary heart disease will decrease to that of people who have never smoked.
• Risk of death will decrease to near the level of people who have never smoked.

You don't have to gain weight if you quit smoking. And you'll be healthier, have more friends and more money, and smell better.

So ,When it comes to smoking and weight loss, smoking can definitely lead to weight loss by affecting the vital systems and changing the way they function. It can lead to weight loss in a person by acting as an appetite suppressant. It can also rev the metabolic rate and lead to weight loss. It leads to burning of calories as a result of which weight can be reduced. However, this cannot be considered to be the right way to lose weight as it can produce harmful side effects by triggering other reactions.

Smoking can lead to cancer, blocked arteries and heart disease. It contributes to high BP by leading to an undesirable increase in heart rate. A lack of oxygen supply to tissues can also result which can lead to several diseases. Hence the disadvantages resulting from smoking outweighs the advantages that smoking might bring upon the human system. It may be irresponsible to consider smoking as one of the ways to lose weight.

The body can function to its optimum level only through exercise and a healthy diet. A person, who is a chain smoker can always change his ways to a better or healthier lifestyle through some amount of effort. This can in turn even offset the bad effects gained through smoking. The smoker has to make changes to his lifestyle quickly; otherwise some negative effects of smoking may become irreversible.