I want to preface this week’s #winewellnesswednesday with this statement: I have never been a smoker. (Other than once when I smoked a tiny part of one cigarette purely for the shocked expressions on some friends’ faces!) Now that I’ve clarified that, I want to talk about nutrition and quitting smoking. Specifically, I want to talk about how nutrition can help someone be successful when quitting smoking. Recently, several of my dearest friends & family have taken up the challenge of quitting smoking, and I applaud them greatly for that effort! (HUZZAH, friends & family!) I went looking for information, because I was curious. Whaddya know! I found stuff! :)
Apparently, dairy products make cigarettes taste icky. (Anyone want to chime in on this?) So grab a glass of milk or a high-protein yogurt (such as Chobani) when you have a craving for a cigarette and it can help deter the smoking urge. (A high-protein snack will also help curb other cravings!) Vegetable sticks (celery or carrots, anyone?) will both give you something to do other than smoke and act as a healthy snack.
One of the articles I found referenced the paleo diet specifically as a support for smokers while trying to quit. Adding more fruits & veggies to your diet and avoiding foods that cause inflammation (such as anything with gluten) can help your body recover from smoking damage. (Granted, that article is from a site dedicated to the benefits of the paleo diet.)
Have you quit smoking successfully? What helped you quit? What do you wish you’d tried, nutritionally speaking?
Cheers! Here’s to your health! :)