Fifteen minutes of moderate exercise can increase the effect of nicotine lozenges used to ward off cigarette cravings, say researchers.
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Exercise helps reduce cigarette cravings: study

People who have just quit smoking and are using nicotine lozenges to dampen cravings can boost the effect with a short bout of exercise, according to a new study. This can help prevent them from relapsing.

A group of 30 people who had just quit smoking were tested at a lab at Western University in London, Ontario. All were given the lozenges to control cravings for a cigarette. Half were also given 15 minutes of moderate exercise.

Those who did not exercise but just the lozenge experienced a 30 per cent decrease in their craving. Those who had the lozenge and exercise had a 45 per cent reduction.

A ‘very useful’ finding

“We think it’s very useful,” said Harry Prapavessis, a professor and director of the Exercise and Health Psychology Laboratory at Western University. “We think that finding complementary treatments that perhaps can provide more impact with regards to craving reduction is very important because we know that if a smoker who quits can’t deal with their cravings then that’s a really good sign that they will likely relapse and go back to smoking.”

ListenResearchers will try to add exercise to other, traditional and longer smoking cessation programs to see if it can help people quit and stay off cigarettes.

Between 17 and 18 per cent of Canadians smoke regularly and many of those want to quit.  Prapavessis says it is his mandate to try to see how exercise can help them do that.

The World Health Organzation says tobacco kills nearly 6 million people each year.

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