Smoking can cause cancer, heart and lung disease, and increase your risks of a number of different life-threatening conditions. However, Medline Plus, an online resource of the National Institutes of Health, estimates that more than 50 million Americans still light up every day, despite the grave threat that tobacco poses to their health. The reason so many people have trouble giving up smoking is that quitting is often associated with significant withdrawal symptoms, both physical and mental, making it a long uphill climb to give up this dangerous habit.
Nicotine
The chief agent of addiction in cigarettes is the chemical nicotine. Nicotine increases heart rate, boosts alertness and suppresses the appetite, and it has a similar addictive potential as alcohol and opiates. Generally, the longer a user has smoked and become used to regular fixes of nicotine, the more severe the withdrawal symptoms can be. The National Institutes of Health report that while around 40 percent of smokers attempt to quit nicotine every year, only 5 percent actually succeed due to withdrawal symptoms.
Physical Withdrawal
The physical symptoms of nicotine withdrawal usually start within two to three hours after the last cigarette, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. These symptoms can include nausea, headache, sweating, interruptions in normal sleeping cycles and an increase in appetite. Quitters may also experience tingling in the extremities, and respiratory symptoms mimicking the onset of the common cold. If the physical symptoms of nicotine withdrawal become severe, you can treat them with over-the-counter medication as you would with any normal ailment.
Psychological Withdrawal
The psychological effect of nicotine withdrawal tends to start around the same time as physical symptoms manifest. These symptoms include an intense craving for a cigarette, anxiety, tension, an inability to concentrate and irritability. These effects increase in intensity for the first few days of the quitting process, peaking around the third to fifth day and then losing intensity. The desire to smoke, however, can be a temptation for months or longer, even after physical cravings have faded.
Weight Gain
One very common side effect of giving up smoking is weight gain. Nicotine acts as a natural appetite suppressant, and often when people give up the oral habit of smoking, they are tempted to replace it with eating. According to "The New York Times," quitters can expect to gain 21 lbs. on average, if they are able to give up tobacco successfully. Increasing exercise during the quitting process can both help smokers focus on things other than their desire for nicotine as well as reduce the amount of weight gained during the process.
