Healthy snacks that help with quitting smoking?
CriminalMIndsFan
Posts: 13
Is there anything besides carrot sticks that you can munch on that is a healthy alternative to munch on when you are trying to quit smoking? I had my last smoke yesterday afternoon and I'm trying to find healthy snack alternatives to help fight the cravings for the nicotine. Any and all tips appreciated. Thanks.
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Replies
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sugar free gun or hard candy such as the crystal light candies0
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frozen fruit (grapes) or any raw veggie. Sugar free jello or maybe even an ice cold glass of water.0
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I did carrot sticks. I got sick of carrots so I would go outside, with a handful of carrots, and bite them, but then spit them out.
If you are just now trying to quit, you might want to try electronic cigarettes. Those also helped me. Good Luck!!!0 -
That is how I quit smoking too, an electronic cig.............used it sparingly for about a month..............been smoke-free since August 10th, 2011 :bigsmile: After 23 yrs of smoking, it was a last resort!0
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18 days smoke free and I use bottled water to keep my hands busy and gum..0
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Drink ice cold water, with lemon and chew a minty gum. It will reinforce how cool and clean your breath is now that you quit.
That always helped me!
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Congrats to all you non smokers! I am 2 months smoke free now. Lots of ice water helped me. Also an electronic cigarette. You can get the disposable ones at gas stations & drug stores for about $8. Another snack is sugar snow peas and edamame. They both take a little while to eat, and you have to use your hands. Good luck! :bigsmile:0
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Way to go....I just had my 1 year aniversary last week!!! You have made an awesome and life changing decision!
Some things that worked for me: Coffee and lots of it!!! Sun flower seeds, Chewing gum, Hard candies - Minty because I smoked menthols!, Loved the forzen grapes tooo!
Just keep you mouth occupied. Sometimes a toothpick helps too.0 -
That is how I quit smoking too, an electronic cig.............used it sparingly for about a month..............been smoke-free since August 10th, 2011 :bigsmile: After 23 yrs of smoking, it was a last resort!
This is how I did it! That thing is amazing. I also started gaining weight so I started taking bee pollen to curb that appetite! I was lucky to have only gained 8 lbs before I discovered the bee pollen.
When I was taking it for appetite suppression, I would take 2 right before breakfast on an empty stomach and 2 right before lunch, or I would take them with a protein shake.
Now I take them right before a run (we live in the city and pass by several restaurants that smell fantastic) or in the spring/summer AFTER I eat to help treat allergy symptoms.
Gum is also good.
Good luck! You will not regret this I promise. I loved loved loved smoking and could not imagine being so happy with out it, but I will say my life is so much better with out those darn things. They are expensive now too.0 -
I am using the e cig too and its wonderful, I am three weeks into and and I now hardly puff on the e cig either.0
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Yep, defnitely hard candies. Coffee Nips did it for me, something about them appealed to the same taste craving. My husband did it with Jolly Ranchers. I also used cough drops because the first few weeks saw a real increase in the "lung clearing" I was doing. Also, and this was HUGE for me, it did me SO much good--ice water. Every time a craving hit, I slugged back a few cold gulps of ice water. It really helped.
It's been a little over 6 years for me--from 2 1/2-3 packs a day to nothing--we steered clear of anything with nicotine because we were looking to really quit, not just change our nicotine delivery system. I absolutely promise you it will get so much better, it will get so fabulous you wonder why you didn't quit sooner.
Good luck, hang in, you're doing it!
Kris0 -
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Way to go....I just had my 1 year aniversary last week!!! You have made an awesome and life changing decision!
Some things that worked for me: Coffee and lots of it!!! Sun flower seeds, Chewing gum, Hard candies - Minty because I smoked menthols!, Loved the forzen grapes tooo!
Just keep you mouth occupied. Sometimes a toothpick helps too.
Oooh, yeah, I'd forgotten about the frozen grapes!
Kris0 -
Is there anything besides carrot sticks that you can munch on that is a healthy alternative to munch on when you are trying to quit smoking? I had my last smoke yesterday afternoon and I'm trying to find healthy snack alternatives to help fight the cravings for the nicotine. Any and all tips appreciated. Thanks.
I also had my last smoke yesterday!0 -
That is how I quit smoking too, an electronic cig.............used it sparingly for about a month..............been smoke-free since August 10th, 2011 :bigsmile: After 23 yrs of smoking, it was a last resort!
This is how I did it! That thing is amazing. I also started gaining weight so I started taking bee pollen to curb that appetite! I was lucky to have only gained 8 lbs before I discovered the bee pollen.
When I was taking it for appetite suppression, I would take 2 right before breakfast on an empty stomach and 2 right before lunch, or I would take them with a protein shake.
Now I take them right before a run (we live in the city and pass by several restaurants that smell fantastic) or in the spring/summer AFTER I eat to help treat allergy symptoms.
Gum is also good.
Good luck! You will not regret this I promise. I loved loved loved smoking and could not imagine being so happy with out it, but I will say my life is so much better with out those darn things. They are expensive now too.
Hmmm, never heard of the bee pollen...........I gained about the same amount of weight as you, under 10 pds..........the e-cig helped me I think because of the hand to mouth motion..........I tried evrything else before with no success!!!
Congrats to everyone that has quit and to those in the process!! It will eventually get easier!!!0 -
Meditation is the best remedy to quit smoking 0
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I had the problem of going cold turkey with smoking, I just couldn't quit!
So my friend told me a great way of doing it, just tell your self you can only have a smoke at the weekend when your out with friends or socialising. By the time the weekend came and I had those cigs, the sunday my mouth tasted awful, which I hadn't realised before. The next week was the same, then I just never bothered again cause I felt like I was forcing myself to smoke at the weekend!0 -
I used a McDonald's straw (same size around as a cig) cut down to be the same length, its free and it worked for me. "Smoked" it everywhere.
As far as food...
Radishes cucumbers, pretty much any veggie that you like to eat, just skip the ranch.
Try taking walks if you can. One thing that works great is to change what your doing when you get the craving.
3 yrs 19 days smoke free... 0 -
I Quit Smoking November 2, 2011....I used a clicking pen to occupy my hand. Of course the clicking sound may have been annoying to people around me (LOL) but nobody complained. I eat tootsie rolls and Celery sticks.0
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Yep, defnitely hard candies. Coffee Nips did it for me, something about them appealed to the same taste craving. My husband did it with Jolly Ranchers. I also used cough drops because the first few weeks saw a real increase in the "lung clearing" I was doing. Also, and this was HUGE for me, it did me SO much good--ice water. Every time a craving hit, I slugged back a few cold gulps of ice water. It really helped.
It's been a little over 6 years for me--from 2 1/3-3 packs a day to nothing--we steered clear of anything with nicotine because we were looking to really quit, not just change our nicotine delivery system. I absolutely promise you it will get so much better, it will get so fabulous you wonder why you didn't quit sooner.
Good luck, hang in, you're doing it!
Kris
Just wanted to thank you for the info,0 -
That is how I quit smoking too, an electronic cig.............used it sparingly for about a month..............been smoke-free since August 10th, 2011 :bigsmile: After 23 yrs of smoking, it was a last resort!
This is how I did it! That thing is amazing. I also started gaining weight so I started taking bee pollen to curb that appetite! I was lucky to have only gained 8 lbs before I discovered the bee pollen.
When I was taking it for appetite suppression, I would take 2 right before breakfast on an empty stomach and 2 right before lunch, or I would take them with a protein shake.
Now I take them right before a run (we live in the city and pass by several restaurants that smell fantastic) or in the spring/summer AFTER I eat to help treat allergy symptoms.
Gum is also good.
Good luck! You will not regret this I promise. I loved loved loved smoking and could not imagine being so happy with out it, but I will say my life is so much better with out those darn things. They are expensive now too.
Hmmm, never heard of the bee pollen...........I gained about the same amount of weight as you, under 10 pds..........the e-cig helped me I think because of the hand to mouth motion..........I tried evrything else before with no success!!!
Congrats to everyone that has quit and to those in the process!! It will eventually get easier!!!
I could not stop eating, omg, it was the most insane thing ever. The bee pollen curbed that insatiable appetite as well as gave me other benefits that made me happy.
Nicotine is the most addictive drug there is, after 25 years of smoking and trying to stop all the time, the ecig is the only thing that actually worked for me. You are right, it had a lot to do with habits of hands, I also got satisfaction in blowing out the vapor for some reason.0 -
CARRY A TRAVEL TOOTHBURSH , BRUSH AFTER YOU EAT CAUSE WE KNOW THAT IS A HARD SMOKE TO GIVE UP. HEY WHY DONT YOU FREIND ME ? I HAVE BEEN THINKING HARD TO START THE QUITTING PROCESS. I HAVENT REALLY STARTED BUT MAYBE I WILL. GOOD LUCK0
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This is for any of you that are considering stopping. This is A GREAT way to either stop or be healthier about it since there are so many cancer causing additives in a cig that are not in this. I also wanted to state that I am not a part of this organization and am not making any money off of them.
http://www.smokesation.com/electronic-cigarette-kit-v-go/0 -
I gave up smoking 7 years ago, and I'll try to recall what I did at the time, mmmm. I recall water helped me a lot when I craved a cigarette.
Beware foods or drinks linked to smoking, like Coffee which only exacerbates the problem, that's why I the water helped me.0 -
I quit January 1. I did not log my food for 8-10 days until I had the cigi cravings under control. I didn't go nuts eating a bunch of crap, but I just wanted to focus on kicking the nicotine habit without stressing about my nutrition.
It's great to see so many responses from ex-smokers! Lots of different methods for quitting, we all found something that worked for us :drinker:0 -
I stopped smoking in May 2011 cold turkey. I gained about 20 lb, which is why I'm here.
Frozen blueberries
Popcorn (either the microwaveable fat free ones or air popped)
Coffee (switched to decaf around 3pm or I'd be up all night)
To keep my hands busy in the evening (when I was most tempted to smoke), I took up crochet while I watched TV.0 -
I opted for the nicotine patch to quit..... and during final exams weeks I will chew Coffee Flavored Nips candies (30 calories each). I still need the oral fixation when I am stressed out. My husband ate an apple everytime he wanted a cigarette when he was quitting. Can't say he likes apples much anymore but he did manage to quit.0
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I opted for the nicotine patch to quit..... and during final exams weeks I will chew Coffee Flavored Nips candies (30 calories each). I still need the oral fixation when I am stressed out. My husband ate an apple everytime he wanted a cigarette when he was quitting. Can't say he likes apples much anymore but he did manage to quit.
This is my problem. I smoke when I'm stressed....at least that's what I did before I decided to quit. Now I don't know what to do and I'm under a lot of stress right now. For starters I'm living with 4 other adults and 2 small children in a small 3 bedroom place where my "bedroom" is the livingroom and I am winding up with little to no privacy.....then there's the fact that I still have 99.9% of what little "property" I own in the state I fled for my life from when my ex husband tried to kill me. That stuff is in a storage unit that I really can't afford but have no way to get to that state to clear out my storage unit right now and if I did I have no place to put my belongings......top all that with the fact that my new fiance is in a war zone in Afganastan until December when his unit is scheduled to come home and now is really not the best time for a stress smoker to pick to quit smoking. I survived the first 24 hours without caving into the cravings though so I think I can make it......I'm proud of myself for making it this far :bigsmile:0 -
PS: Wasn't easy but I survived the first 24 + hours being smoke free This morning the cravings were pretty easy to ignore but about 12:15PM I couldn't ignore it anymore. Grabbed 2 pieces of strong, minty gum to chew on which helped and when the next really bad craving hit I went for a nice walk in the woods. That really got my mind off it especially when I stopped for a break and a beautifull deer snuck up fairly close behind me. I sat perfectly still until she wandered off and then came home. It was a breathtaking 2 minutes(approximate). Tonight between gum and watching movies I've been able to handle the cravings easier.......I wonder how tomorrow is going to go...... 0
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I used to hang out at the about.com smoking cessation forums, and one thing they really drove home for me was this: a craving usually lasts just a few minutes, and it passes whether you smoke or not. If you smoke, though, you've just guaranteed you'll have another, stronger craving soon and you've just put yourself right back to square one. I used to view every craving I rode out (ice water helped me immensely with cravings) as a victory, because that meant I was one step closer to being done, one craving farther away from being a smoker. It always helped, made me feel in control and like a winner.
Another thing that helped? A quit meter. Silk Quit makes a good one for free download. Every morning I'd get up and look at that thing on my computer screen, see how many cigarettes I hadn't smoked, see how much money I hadn't put torch to, and it helped a lot--very reinforcing.
Good luck--you can do it!
Kris0
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