
Ask HN: Alternative tips for quitting smoking? - oxplot
I have a friend whose attempts at quitting smoking has been unsuccessful to date. Most of the material that I find to help with quitting at best sound cliché to them and fall off the radar of the quitter very early on.<p>So I&#x27;d like to know if any of you know or have successfully made use of non-mainsream material that caught your attention and stuck with you through your trip out of smoking?
======
hoodoof
I tried at least 60 times and eventually stopped 15 years ago.

The secret for me was not to "give up smoking" because then you are
psychologically giving something away for nothing in return - your
subconscious mind does not like that. So don't try to give up smoking. Just
stop smoking temporarily.

So each time the urge came up to smoke I said I would defer the decision for a
few minutes and make the decision about having a cigarette a little bit later.
So I never stopped forever I just "stopped for a short while". So far the
decision to have a cigarette has been deferred for about 15 years.

I also made the decision to smoke a tangible choice between all the good
things I would get from not smoking, and the things I would get from smoking.
"I choose to be healthy and have clear lungs and not die young, instead of
choosing to have this cigarette". As opposed to "I'm going to deprive myself
of a cigarette that I really want, for nothing good in return."

~~~
sherjilozair
This right here made me stop as well. I used to keep a box in plain view. That
facilitated the thought of "It's right here, I can smoke any time I want. I'll
just not smoke right now, maybe later if I still feel like it, the box is
going nowhere."

~~~
roninresearcher
+1 to the mental attitude and intermittent fasting, has got me to quit
fasting.

------
drinchev
I stopped smoking for 2 months starting January this year. What helped me was
a reddit thread
[https://www.reddit.com/r/stopsmoking](https://www.reddit.com/r/stopsmoking) .
It was a very helpful community and also full of suggestions what to do when
you have cravings for a cigarette.

There is one special book that I highly recommend . Allen Carrs - easy way to
stop smoking. [http://www.amazon.com/Allen-Carrs-Easy-Stop-
Smoking/dp/06154...](http://www.amazon.com/Allen-Carrs-Easy-Stop-
Smoking/dp/0615482155)

It just works. But you need to be persistent with the decision.

~~~
jaseflow
My wife and I both quit after reading this book.

------
kenOfYugen
In order to quit smoking you really need to want to. Else don't even bother.

Best way to get off smoking is to start vaping. Get two high drain 18650
batteries, a quality charger, a dripping atomizer and a mechanical or
regulated device.

Actually vaping can be much more fulfilling than smoking, whether you are
looking for a nice flavor or a nicotine high.

Building and wicking coils yourself, mixing glycerin with flavoring to produce
your own blend, as well as maintaining your equipment clean, are part of
keeping your mind interested and occupied when it comes to getting your fix
which in my opinion is key.

Nicotine absorption is much more efficient and you end up ingesting less of it
when you find your sweet spot.

Then you must replace smoking with vaping in activities that are linked with
the smoking addiction, (like when waking up, or during coffee, or after lunch,
or after sex, when having a drink, etc.)

Then before you know it, you won't be craving cigarettes any more as the
psychological addiction would have been cured. After that you can either
continue vaping or slowly stop vaping as well. Some people keep vaping just
flavoring and drop the nicotine completely.

If you stop vaping, keep your vaping equipment around, because triggering a
smoking habit in the future due to unforeseen events, is highly probable.

That's anecdotal information of course, but works for me and a lot of other
people it seems.

~~~
tlarkworthy
I second this. I swapped quite successfully to vaping. I prefer it now, and
even occasionally I get drunk and smoke real cigarettes, only to drop them the
next day in favor of vaping.

Those kind of 'accidents' were the trigger to start smoking again in all
previous attempts to give up smoking. I genuinely prefer vaping now. I am in
no hurry to give that up either as it's not particularly bad for you
(comparatively).

~~~
kenOfYugen
Yeah, being a happy drunk and not smoking a cigarette is tough, and
'accidents' do happen. For me that's the toughest part of the psychological
addiction to drop completely. But it's fine, like you, I get back to vaping
when I sober up in the morning.

------
ggreer
I assume your friend wants to quit for health reasons. In that case, have
e-cigarettes been tried? Compared to tobacco, vaping is healthier, more
fragrant, and often cheaper. Sure it's worse than _not_ smoking, but it's a
hell of a lot better than the status quo.

Note: I have no dog in this fight. I don't smoke or vape, and I never have.
I'm just pointing out that even if your friend doesn't quit, it's possible to
get the nicotine without the cancer.

~~~
stinos
_Compared to tobacco, vaping is healthier ... without the cancer_

While that is certainly possible, I'd rather wait for some longer term
research before making such claims.

~~~
ggreer
E-cig vapor is propylene glycol and nicotine. If that causes cancer, then
either fog machines cause cancer or nicotine patches cause cancer. In either
case, it would be a very surprising discovery.

~~~
danieltillett
Nicotine is none too good on your heart on its own. Heart disease is a bigger
killer with smoking than cancer. While probably safer than smoking, vaping is
likely to have some non-negligible risk.

------
coolvision
I just returned from a 10 days vacation.

Nice side effect was that I quit smoking during this time, and don't actually
want to continue now.

I had cravings several times during this 10 days, but I had too much stuff to
distract myself with, because I packed my vacation with as much activity as
possible -- road trip, visited 5 countries, spent time on beaches and in the
mountains, etc...

There are few reasons for which vacation is needed for quitting:

\- much less stress when on vacation, so less reasons to smoke (for me smoking
was in some regard for dealing with stress).

\- often smoking is for stimulation and out of boredom, less need for that if
having fun on vacation

\- often smoking is associated with daily habits (morning coffee with
cigarette for me), and on vacation you break out of daily routine, and can
skip that

\- being physically active (trekking, cycling) during quitting is cool because
you start feeling effects of quitting on your endurance immediately (after few
days of non-smoking), so it's a good motivation

\- even better would to go hiking/camping far from any sources of cigarettes,
I did not do it this time, but would do in future if i would relapse into
smoking

------
bambax
I quit smoking 15 years ago by just quitting -- stopping abruptly. I was a.
ery heavy smoker (over 2 packs a day) but the trick was that I eally, really
wanted to quit. It was not something people around me asked me to do, or a
fear of getting sick in some distant future, it really was me, now.

The reason I wanted to quit so much was I felt enslaved; when getting to a
place for dinner for example, the first thing I did was check where I could
buy cigarettes and at what time the tobacco shops would close, so that I would
not be short on the drug -- although I also carried at leat two new packs with
me at all times. It was cazy.

The hard part is the first week, which is quite horrible, but after that it
gets easier.

That said, I had started smoking relatively late (at 23). In my eperience,
people who started young (16 or younger) can never really quit. They sometimes
stop for extended periods of time (5 years maybe) and then invariably start
again...

------
Sevrene
This might be a bit controversial and even if it does turn out to be useful
for addiction therapy, that doesn't necessarily mean it will be for your
friend.

Anyway, when I was smoking tobacco every day (albeit only 1 pack a week) I
took LSD for the first time at a very small dose (probably around 90µg) with a
close friend. I wasn't doing it for any real reason except to see what it was
like. Strange enough though afterwards I had no intention at all of continuing
smoking tobacco and I now get extremely nauseous at the slightest smell of
tobacco.

You can find quite a lot of information on psychedelic therapy although a lot
of research was halted after those drugs became stigmatised and illegal. There
is a sort of psychedelic research renaissance occurring and there's been quite
a few new studies on their usefulness.

------
eagsalazar2
I quit smoking after trying and failing several times over a two year period
by following a simple rule: if the urge to smoke even flickered into my mind
for a split second, I _had_ to smoke a cigarette. Initially I went from
smoking 1/2 pack up to 3-4 packs/day. Within a short period of time (2-3 weeks
or so), the smell of cigarette smoke made me want to puke. I got very good at
controlling my thoughts regarding smoking and controlling my impulses. I was
totally off smoking within a month and never went back.

I'm not sure that is a _good_ technique but it did work for me.

edit: inspired by this episode of he-man,
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnmMyqffSQU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnmMyqffSQU)

------
fierycatnet
Well, this might not be popular opinion and many will think it's a sham, but
I've used Allen Carr's book to quit drinking... His is actually more known for
his 'stop smoking' book and I've known people who used it successfully as
well. From my personal experience, a lot of this is in the head, so if your
friend is open minded and really wants to quit then Carr's book just might be
the answer. I can only vouch for his 'method' that helped me with a drink, not
smoke, but it's the same principle. Just my 2c.

------
ChoGGi
I quit by not quitting; I tried herbal cigarettes, that didn't work too well
(nasty things).

Personally I like the act of smoking, just don't like everything else that
goes along with it. I found these things called Beedies (it's kind of an
Indian Cigarillo), they make an herbal version.

no nasty chemicals and they don't taste half-bad (slightly harsh). They have a
campfire smoke smell, so interestingly enough non-smokers compliment me on it.

If I ever have (had) an urge I just puff on one of those. I stopped inhaling a
long time ago so my lungs feel fine. Now I just smoke them because as I said I
enjoy smoking (and most of my friends still smoke).

You can usually find them at head shops or online as well. The brand is SoeX
Herbal, just make sure to get the herbal ones or you will be getting Tobacco.
[http://www.soex.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=84...](http://www.soex.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=84_92)

Edit: Forgot to mention, a pack costs between 4-6 bucks, and they keep
decently in the freezer.

~~~
hoodoof
Are you still at risk of mouth and tongue cancer?

~~~
ChoGGi
Not sure, but it is still smoke. It isn't healthy for you.

I smoke at most once a month so I don't care

Edit: That said you don't have any chemical urges using them, just the mental
enjoyment of a good smoke. I find I still get a slight urge when I'm drinking
with friends (5+ years quit)

------
lacker
E-cigarettes are a huge change. It seems to be much easier to quit smoking
using e-cigarettes than other methods. First, switch to e-cigarettes. That
already improves your health because you aren't getting the tar. Then you can
lower the nicotine dose and it's easier than quitting smoking because you can
do it gradually.

------
svs
Quitting smoking is about practice. Keep quitting and do it sincerely.
Eventually you will learn how to quit.

The trick is to avoid the "F __* it " mentality. After yet another failed
attempt, it's easy to say f __* it and go back to smoker mode instead of
staying in quitting mode.

Quitting is not something that just happens. It takes years to quit. Nicotine
rewires your brain to the point where you identify as a smoker. Deprogramming
that is a lot of effort. Therefore quit as often as you need to. As long as
you do it sincerely, eventually it sticks.

Allen Carr's book is also very nice. It is a mild hypnosis, repeating the same
four things over and over again until they become as ingrained as the habit,
so read it cover to cover and don't stop half way through

Also, every time you smoke, focus on the bad things about smoking - the smell,
the taste, the cancer.....

Good luck.

~~~
vixen99
Alan Carr's book finally worked with a friend who'd failed twice before.

------
riffraff
FWIW, I quit after something in the 15-20 years range, by mostly saying "I
will quit".

But: I did give myself some "escape hatches", i.e. I decided I'd still have a
few cigarettes in the case of wedding and bachelor parties, of which I had a
couple coming up in the following six months. I knew those would be really
hard spots to go through, so I just made them into goals, "I will go this
three months without a smoke, then when we go party hard and I'll have as much
as I want".

By the time you get to the third or fourth time, you have lost the habit
enough that it doesn't matter anymore.

£DIT: but honestly, I believe most of the clichéd advise is probably correct,
and that you can effectively quit only if you want to quit. Most people who
try don't really want to.

------
b6
I think it's often a good approach to take the time to understand the current
situation, understand the future desired situation, and commit to a doable
plan to get from the one to the other.

For example, if someone wants to quit cigarettes, they could figure out how
many they smoke per day. Now, this week, could they smoke only N-1 per day?
Next week, could they smoke only N-2 per day?

Maybe it seems excruciatingly slow, but is it really? Plan it out. Get a
calendar and hang it somewhere prominent and write down what is supposed to be
taking place each week.

Slow and steady can accomplish anything. No heroics necessary. Just be
relentless.

Best wishes to your friend. I often thank my parents for quitting smoking when
I was born; if they hadn't, they'd be gone now, or in absolute ruins
healthwise.

~~~
Broken_Hippo
This is one method I've known to help people quit.

Quitting is a lifestyle change, much like losing weight. While doing the
above, the trick is to gradually change habits. Instead of that cigarette, do
Something else. Remember to be forgiving - one day messing up is simply one
day messing up, tomorrow is a new day. Same for 10 days.

An additional suggestion is before or during the gradual cutdown on
cigarettes, I suggest breaking smallish smoking habits as well. For example,
waiting a little longer every day after meals and after waking (two major
habit times), going one workbreak a day without a cigarette (I suggest reading
or drinking liquid).

And keep in mind that part of the process is learning to be around others that
smoke. Smoking can be a social activity and flavors your social life to a
point.

Lastly, find something to help with the bits of enjoyment/relaxation the
person loses through the day. This is, I think, the true reason an
antidepressant helps some people quit. Perhaps developing a relaxation
technique (used for anxiety or for things like meditation) would help, or
having varied little daily rewards.

Good luck to them, for sure.

------
egze
I switched to vaping in May and haven't had a cigarette since. In fact,
cigarette smoke disgusts me now.

[https://www.reddit.com/r/electronic_cigarette](https://www.reddit.com/r/electronic_cigarette)
was a lot of help.

------
tretiy3
+1 vote for e-cigarettes. After 22 years of smoking and lots of tries to quit
i switched to e-cigarettes. After 2 weeks smoked only e-cigarettes switched to
Nicotine gum. 3 days later quit gum. It was 3 years ago and i am not smoker
since then.

~~~
mirimir
For me, it was snuff, then nicotine gum, then nothing. That was long ago,
before e-cigs existed. Snuff was gross.

------
jacobkg
A major predictor of how easy or hard it will be to quit is how long the
person can wait after waking up before having their first cigarette:

[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2933747/](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2933747/)

~~~
bambax
I used to smoke my first cigarette _while still in bed_ (best smoke of the day
BTW), but then I quit abruptly 15 years ago and never went back (hate the
thought of smoking about as much as the smell now).

But I really wanted to quit (see my other comment). If you don't actually, you
personally want to quit, you can't quit, and no lecturing or examples of
people getting sick or even dying around you will change that.

------
seanccox
If possible, relocate. David Sedaris packed up and moved to Japan to quit, and
I found success when I moved from Istanbul. It's not a practical solution for
everyone, but some effort to change one's environment can have hugely positive
effects.

------
siquick
I only smoke when drinking but just cannot seem to shake this habit.

The smell and act of smoking disgusts me when I'm sober but as soon as any
booze hits my lips, I instantly want a cigarette.

Any tips for kicking this? I've been doing it on and off for 18 years so time
to stop.

------
FemtoJoule
I was not able to stop, too. I skipped the materials and "geeked" myself into
e cigarettes. I was able to quit (tobacco) smoking immediately. Thats not
perfect, but the lower harm of e cigarettes compared to tobacco is already
evident.

~~~
FemtoJoule
To back my evidence statement:
[https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/e-cigarettes-
an-e...](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/e-cigarettes-an-evidence-
update)

Fairly comprehensive list of studies related to the matter, commented in
german:
[http://blog.rursus.de/studienliste/](http://blog.rursus.de/studienliste/)

I think its worth a shot.

------
MehdiHK
Watch this:

[https://www.ted.com/talks/johann_hari_everything_you_think_y...](https://www.ted.com/talks/johann_hari_everything_you_think_you_know_about_addiction_is_wrong?language=en)

------
brudgers
I can't quit somebody else's smoking. Odds are you can't either. The material
is cliche because short of a lockdown or death, people have to choose to not
smoke in order to quit. There's no silver bullet.

Good luck.

~~~
DrJokepu
Yep, to quit smoking you need to stop smoking cigarettes.

------
hkmurakami
From a friend who has been clean from more serious substances for a few years
now:

"It's a battle every day."

The mentality that the war is never over is an elucidating one for those of us
without a substance abuse history.

~~~
baddox
My late grandfather quit smoking in his early 30s, and he said he would
occasionally have nightmares that he started again, in his 70s.

~~~
dbasedow
I quit at 23 and now at 32 i still have the occasional dream of buying
cigarettes. Although in the last couple of years the dreams changed. Now I
realize that i no longer smoke, but start smoking again in the dream. I guess
deep down in my subconscious I still fear failing.

------
giaour
Acupuncture helped me quit after 8 years of smoking and several unsuccessful
attempts w/ nicotine gum or patches. It was probably an elaborate placebo, but
I've been smoke free for 7 years.

------
aharonovich
Embarressingly enough- "the easy way", e- cigs, declaring it to myself four
months ahead of time & lastly doing it on the first day of a two week
vacation.

------
hueving
e cigarettes are the easiest first step. They appear to be much less harmful
than tobacco so far and they satisfy the nicotine craving. They also have the
added benefit of getting the smoke smell out of everything.

Even if your friend can't give up nicotine, he/she will be worlds better
vaping.

------
ssalat
Watch lung cancer videos on YouTube. Quitted smoking 6 years ago, never would
do it again.

~~~
drinchev
This didn't work for me. You always say to yourself : "that's not gonna happen
to me" and "back in the 60's nobody cared about that, why should I care now."

Although people are different and motivation is different for everyone.

------
Adamus
my friend got a girlfriend and had sex, hasn't had a fag since, might sound a
bit odd but yeah I guess its changing one buzz for another

------
teen
switch to e-ciggs (vape). it's about 95% less harmful and is actually way more
enjoyable

------
cammil
Quit alcohol.

------
jcr
Many addictions are thoroughly enjoyable but ultimately harmful. Smoking is
one such addiction. Some people shy away from the term "addiction" due to all
of the horrible connotations, but absolutely everyone is "addicted" to
multiple things. The addiction might be a substance like nicotine, or the
addiction might be a mannerism, or the addiction might be over-eating, or the
addiction might even be a way of thinking, but none the less, human beings are
always creatures of habit.

There's an old and jaded phrase, "You're unique, just like everyone else." The
same can be said about addiction, "You're addicted, just like everyone else."
When put in such simple and straightforward terms, the commonality of harmful
addictions like smoking shines through. You're not the first person or the
only person with a harmful habit. The good news is that we can change our
habits. The bad news is that changing a habit takes effort.

The problem is not smoking itself since if only done on rare occasions it can
be exceedingly pleasurable, instead, the real problem is the habit of smoking.
It's the _repeated_ and _extensive_ exposure to smoke entering your system
that eventually kills you. The rates of emphysema and cancer (lung, mouth,
throat, stomach, colorectal, ...) due to smoke exposure are extremely high in
poor places where people cook their food over open flames or burn wood for
heat without adequate ventilation. If you are a habitual tobacco smoker, then
you're certainly not the only one killing yourself with smoke, and unlike you,
many must endure the smoke to get the food and heat they need to just survive.
You have it easy. You have a choice.

The harmful habits are reinforced by the positive feedback of pleasure.
Another old and jaded phrase, "Too much of a good thing," comes to mind, but
the misguided phrase, "All things in moderation," is dangerous. The trouble
with the idea of all things in moderation is some things are simply too
addictive to even try, so they pose an irrational risk of addiction. Nicotine
is __immensely__ addictive on a chemical basis. In fact, the neurotransmitter
receptor often used to measure the addictive qualities of substances is
actually named after nicotine:

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicotinic_acetylcholine_recept...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicotinic_acetylcholine_receptor)

You may, or may not, understand all the biochemistry involved, but most people
can understand the logic of how a simple chemical compound like nicotine can
cause a pleasurable response, and the pleasure can lead to a habitual
addiction.

If you are already addicted to a pleasurable but harmful habit, a mental trick
to solve the problem is to decide to never quit, but also decide to break the
__habit__ of pursuing your addiction regularly. You can harness your inner
procrastinator to your advantage by simply saying, "Maybe I'll have a smoke
later," when the urge hits you. Over time, the beneficial procrastination gets
easier and easier. The common "Smoking Cessation" products, both prescribed
and over-the-counter, like nicotine patches, gum, and mints may be helpful in
your procrastination efforts, but be wary of the all too common problem of
replacing one addiction with another.

Some have claimed that "electronic cigarettes" (e-cigs, vaporizers, vape) are
useful for smoking cessation, but I have not personally seen any peer reviewed
research results to support such claims. Similar to the proven "Smoking
Cessation" products (patch, gum, mints), the e-cigs can provide nicotine in a
form other than smoke, but since the nicotine itself is addictive, you still
have the same substantial risk of merely replacing one addiction with another.
The common claims nicotine infused e-cigs being harmless are pure bullshit --
There is a reason why all the major tobacco companies now have their own
brands of e-cigs; they want you to become addicted.

[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26270431](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26270431)

[http://www.ccjm.org/cgi/doi/10.3949/ccjm.82a.14054](http://www.ccjm.org/cgi/doi/10.3949/ccjm.82a.14054)

> _ABSTRACT_

> _Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes)—devices that generate a nicotine vapor
> that can be inhaled by the user in a fashion that mimics the experience of
> smoking—are increasing in popularity, and many people seem to view them as
> reasonable alternatives to nicotine replacement therapy to help them refrain
> from smoking. Physicians should not encourage such a view. E-cigarettes are
> unregulated nicotine delivery systems that have never been subjected to any
> kind of testing of safety or of efficacy as nicotine replacement therapy.
> Moreover, for young people who have never smoked, these devices could
> potentially serve as a gateway drug._

The claims of nicotine itself being harmless are also bullshit.

Nicotine itself causes cancer (i.e. it's carcinogenic). You don't need to be a
genius or even particularly adept in chemistry to realize how nicotine is
carcinogenic due to how it reacts in the body. Without being too fancy or
confusing, when Nicotine loses its methyl group, it becomes Nornicotine which
when exposed to mild acids (syliva, digestive tract, lungs, or even acids in
blood) becomes Nitronornicotine (NNN) which __IS__ classified by the
International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as a Group 1 Carcinogen.

Smokers die of colorectal cancer, but it's not due to being assholes, instead,
it's due to simple chemistry that everyone can understand.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicotine#Carcinogen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicotine#Carcinogen)

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methyl_group](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methyl_group)

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nornicotine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nornicotine)

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N-Nitrosonornicotine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N-Nitrosonornicotine)

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Group_1_carcinogen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Group_1_carcinogen)

Yes, wikipedia disagrees with me about nicotine being a carcinogen, but
wikipedia is dangerously wrong. The above linked pubmed paper is a good place
to start reading (references) about the role nicotine plays in carcinogenesis,
but there is a lot more research out there if you dig. The tobacco (and e-cig)
industry is continuously doing everything it can to prevent nicotine from
being properly classified as a carcinogen by the International Agency for
Research on Cancer (IARC). The editing wars on the wikipedia nicotine page
between the tobacco industry and health (research) professionals are
staggering and notorious. You do not need to be a conspiracy theory kook to
see all the blatant corruption and manipulation at work under the guise of
fake "neutrality" on wikipedia.

Additionally, since nicotine is an effective appetite suppressant, you can
expect to be hungry. Unless you can avoid replacing the satiation pleasure of
smoking with satiation pleasure of eating, you will gain weight, possibly a
lot of weight. In this overly image conscious world, the very idea of possibly
getting fat(er) can be reprehensible enough for some to chose smoking over
weight gain -- This is a false dichotomy. Using a fallacy of false choice to
justify a continuation of a harmful habit is simply irrational. Human biology
has evolved to both crave salts, fats, proteins, and sugars for survival, so
the risk of replacing a harmful smoking habit with a harmful eating habit is
very significant. Once you learn to harness your inner procrastinator to defer
smoking (indefinitely), you may need to also harness it to eat less by
deferring eating until later. Also, when you do mistakenly gorge yourself on
food, you'll notice something extremely odd, namely, you're still hungry, so
you'll eventually learn how eating fails to actually solve the (new) problem
of a perceived hunger sensation/craving. Small snacks of low fat cottage
cheese (or tofu) and fruit may help, and some healthy salt cured foods like
olives and pickles may also help. The goal is to have a small amount of
reasonably healthy food that checks off all the required boxes (salts, fats,
proteins, and sugars).

Your friend may be (rightfully) skeptical, but one of the know ways to stop
smoking is refusing to quit, and surprisingly, the procrastination method
works well for breaking or changing all sorts of harmful habits. I wish your
friend the best of luck.

