Gum, Sugarless Candy, and Twizzlers
I once went through a SmokEnders program. (Actually, I went through their
program 3 times, but that’s another story) One of the bits of interesting
info they provided was that about 3/4 of the cigarettes I smoked weren’t
because my nicotine level was low and needed topping up. Apparently, I
smoked those cigarettes because of other reasons. With a bit of observation
it did appear that I lit up frequently because of hunger, anger,
loneliness/boredom, or fatigue (the HALT reasons) among others. The point
in this is that I was using cigarettes/nicotine for some purpose other than
management of a chemical dependence.
How many reasons are there for eating aside from actual nutritional need? I
might eat because I’m bored, or nervous, or even angry. I might eat because
I used to smoke and smoking was an oral activity involving repeated hand to
mouth motions, the taking in of ’something’, and a sense of filling (either
my stomach or some need).
Where I’m going with this is that there is no difference between smoking
for reasons other than nicotine need or eating for reasons other than
nutritional need. Too many quitters discover to their horror that eating
will swing back to smoking with amazing speed and ease.
I know that almost every quit smoking group or program suggests lots of
oral substitutes when you quit. My question is why? Unbridled eating WILL
pack on the pounds even if most of what you’re eating is sugarless. But
worse than that, you’ll perpetuate a behavior that you are trying to
change. The end result is that while you think you’re making it easier to
quit, you’re making it harder and stretching the process out longer. If you
must attend to your mouth, try brushing slowly and gently and rinsing,
often. Stop using either cigarettes or food as an inappropriate response to
needs that do not really require either. Start to pay attention to what
those needs actually are and provide focused responses. You’ll turn your
smoking habit around in very short order.
Steve
June 18th, 2007 at 4:38 pm
Hi Steve I do follow your quit program and your helping a lot of people that’s
good.I hope you don’t mind a little input. People are not eating to satisfy some
mythical hand to mouth urge, they eat to try to raise low blood sugar levels
Quitting leaves people with low blood glucose levels, the mind and body want
to restore those levels so they eat and unfortunately they eat the wrong things,
typically sweets or high carb foods that get their blood sugar going up quickly
and down quickly pretty much the same way it worked when they smoked.
Better advice would be to advice people to eat foods high in protein, protein
enters the blood stream much slower helping to stabilize blood sugar levels and
reduce the cravings for life sustaining glucose. People who quit can find some
help by eating the same amount of food each day but spreading it out by eating
smaller amounts more often
Eating breakfast is really important because blood sugar levels fall at night,
breakfast should be at least 30 to 40% protein to ensure a steady flow of
glucose.
Keep up the good work
Earl
Steve <ddsteve@…
I once went through a SmokEnders program. (Actually, I went through
their
program 3 times, but that’s another story) One of the bits of interesting
info they provided was that about 3/4 of the cigarettes I smoked weren’t
because my nicotine level was low and needed topping up. Apparently, I
smoked those cigarettes because of other reasons. With a bit of observation
it did appear that I lit up frequently because of hunger, anger,
loneliness/boredom, or fatigue (the HALT reasons) among others. The point
in this is that I was using cigarettes/nicotine for some purpose other than
management of a chemical dependence.
How many reasons are there for eating aside from actual nutritional need? I
might eat because I’m bored, or nervous, or even angry. I might eat because
I used to smoke and smoking was an oral activity involving repeated hand to
mouth motions, the taking in of ’something’, and a sense of filling (either
my stomach or some need).
Where I’m going with this is that there is no difference between smoking
for reasons other than nicotine need or eating for reasons other than
nutritional need. Too many quitters discover to their horror that eating
will swing back to smoking with amazing speed and ease.
I know that almost every quit smoking group or program suggests lots of
oral substitutes when you quit. My question is why? Unbridled eating WILL
pack on the pounds even if most of what you’re eating is sugarless. But
worse than that, you’ll perpetuate a behavior that you are trying to
change. The end result is that while you think you’re making it easier to
quit, you’re making it harder and stretching the process out longer. If you
must attend to your mouth, try brushing slowly and gently and rinsing,
often. Stop using either cigarettes or food as an inappropriate response to
needs that do not really require either. Start to pay attention to what
those needs actually are and provide focused responses. You’ll turn your
smoking habit around in very short order.
Steve
June 19th, 2007 at 6:04 am
Hi Earl,
Thanks for the input, I don’t mind at all. In fact, I welcome any
information that helps quitters better understand their bodies and thus
choose more informed and appropriate responses.
I wouldn’t so quickly, or completely, discount oral fixation or the part
that patterns of behavior play in 20 - 40 years of smoking.
Whether or not proper eating is “better advice” pretty much depends on
the individual and their eating habits. There are many who eat sensibly and
for them your suggestions would more correctly be ‘additional’ advice.
Thanks again Earl,
Steve