How to Help Someone Kick that Smoking Habit

Renowned American writer and novelist Fletcher Knebbel was once quoted humorously saying that smoking is the leading cause of statistics. Humor or not, Knebbel's quote seems to have some truth on it. According to the United State's Center for Disease Control and Prevention, one in every five deaths in the US is caused by the adverse effects of smoking.

Smoking is also said to increase the risk against coronary heart diseases, stroke, lung cancer, chronic bronchitis and emphysema among others.  Hence everyone or at least most of us know how harmful smoking is but the said thing is that nothing is being done.

Higher taxes or the so-called sin taxes are being levied against cigarettes and related products like liquors, as a way to persuade people to quit their smoking vices : but does that really work?

Additional taxes, fines and the long-term health effects of cigarette smoking are often not enough to make people quit their smoking habits. But there is still hope. There are a number of ways on how you can persuade a relative, a friend or even yourself to quit smoking.

Below are some tried and tested method in persuading others to stop smoking.

Listen

They say listening is a skill and it certainly is an important one especially when persuading someone to quit smoking. Ask the smoker what makes it difficult for him to quit smoking. Be sympathetic and don't criticize or scold him.

Figure out if you can address those issues : if you can, work from there.

Present the short-term effects, instead of the long-term

The biggest mistake in persuading people against smoking is that smokers are presented with the long-term effects. What anti-smokers need to do is to show how smoking affects a person in the near future : how smoking can adversely impact him in the short term.

Consider electronic cigarettes

The use of technology is also pivotal in convincing smokers to quit. The emergence of electronic cigarettes has helped smokers wanting to quit their addictive habit. Electronic cigarettes do not have nicotine and simply stimulates the act of tobacco smoking.

There are various types of electronic cigarettes nowadays so you won't run out of choices. While electronic cigarettes may not be as cheap as a pack of cigarettes, you will find that it is more affordable in the long term.

Find a sport or a hobby

Of course another way of convincing smokers to quit is through introducing sports like basketball, tennis badminton or volleyball. On the contrary, if the person you are convincing to quit is not sporty, you can propose hobbies like photography or mountain trekking. Once they're involved into sports or they're engaged into a particular hobby, the tendency to smoke will decrease drastically.

Be a good role model

Being a role model is another way : and perhaps, the most effective way of persuading others against smoking. To put it short and simple, how can you persuade others to stop smoking if you yourself is a smoker?