Quitting Smoking and Weight Gain

Today's post isn't only about quitting smoking and weight gain, but also about how people (and doctors are people too) think to manage weight gain. The post is inspired by a statement made in one of my quit smoking classes. Many people are concerned that when they quit smoking they will gain weight and for both medical and aesthetic reasons, that is often a deal breaker. Unfortunately, literature does support that people who quit smoking will gain ten or so pounds, some will gain much more and some will not gain at all. What the literature doesn't get into, is WHY the person gains weight.. I mean the REAL why.

My "student" is very motivated to quit and has the support of her primary care physician. In fact, he told her that if she gained weight to come back to him and he would assist her. She joked and asked if he was going to send her to a psychiatrist.. I offered my guess, a nutritionist? thinking this doctor was really on top of his ballgame when the "student" said, "No, he said he'd give me something for it." Ah... a pill. I told her not to worry because my health education would cover the weight gain issue and hence, this blog post was born.

[All readers know that I consider medication to be a last resort treatment or certainly a second or third approach , but never a first response to a non emergent situation.]

With regard to tobacco... Some will say that nicotine effects metabolism.. well, it may, but not by much. Seriously, if it increased metabolism enough to affect weight we would bottle it up and use it to treat obesity. More say that nicotine is an appetite suppressant. I agree, it is similar to coffee in that regard.

A person who quits tobacco has to get reacquainted with their appetite. There is also the psychological piece of being bored and eating when one would have smoked, being nervous and eating, being angry and eating.. etc. the classic emotional eating pattern that people who have disordered eating experience everyday.

I smoked myself for about 17 years and through it all I have pictures of life events. Sometimes I am thin and sometimes I am quite overweight (ranging 100 to 149 lbs). Many times, I have a cigarette in my hand or a pack of Winstons on the table near to me. I am fat or thin NOT because of cigarettes but because of FOOD. If you eat too much you will gain weight.. it is energy in and energy out, truly that simple for 95% of the population.

So a former smoker or an emotional eater has to learn two or three things. First, when am I hungry and when am I emotional.. Two, how to cope with emotions in health promoting ways.. journaling, exercising, talking, music, aromatherapy, massage, eating nutritious food! and Third, how does weight control work i.e, what food is healthy, how many calories do I need , how many am I currently eating, how do I keep a healthy low calorie food healthy and low calorie when I prepare it and so on.

When I work with people I encourage the Volumetrics concept. It is important because it is NOT a diet, it is NOT temporary and it IS safe, effective and health promoting.

I really frown on my quitters getting all those toxins out of their system just to put more chemicals in. Lifestyle change first and risky drug therapy and surgery as last resorts.. got that?