HEALTH
your life
QUITTER MOM
quit between eight and 11 times before
they succeed. “Every time you quit,
you’re one step closer to becoming
smoke-free,” says Dr. Healton, a former
three-pack-a-day smoker.
To help you triumph over tobacco,
Parents has teamed up with Legacy to
create a special quit plan for moms and
dads, powered by the group’s online
cutting-edge program, Become an Ex.
Continuing in our March and April
issues and at parentsquitforgood
.com, we’ll help you identify your
smoking triggers, find new ways to get
through your day without cigarettes,
and avoid gaining weight along the
way. Going cold turkey isn’t the most
e ective strategy: Research has shown
that you can at least double your odds
of success if you plan ahead before
you quit, take advantage of nicotine
replacement or other medications, and
get support. At parentsquitforgood
.com, you can share your challenges and
trade tips with other readers. Whether
you smoke a pack a day or light up only
occasionally, there’s never been a better
time to quit—and start spending all that
money on something worthwhile.
Sandy Baugh Huntsville, Alabama
KIDS Alex, 10, and Justin, (at right)
“I started smoking to seem cool, and it became
part of my identity. My grandfather died of
brain cancer when my dad was 16. The night I
decided to quit, I’d had a headache for three
days and smoking made it 100 times worse. A
million scary thoughts ran through my head. I
wanted to see my sons graduate, get jobs, have
children! I was tired of covering up my breath and
using perfume to hide the smell. I realized that
the only thing I was getting out of smoking was a
huge headache and a nail in my co n.”
YEARS SMOKED
CIGARETTES PER DAY
TRIGGERS Experiencing
stress, being around friends
who smoke, feeling bored
says Richard D. Hurt, M. D., director of
the Mayo Clinic Nicotine Dependence
Center, in Rochester, Minnesota. Even
if you never smoke in rooms where your
children play, tiny particles cling to
your clothes and circulate through your
house. And while no parent wants her
child to become a smoker, kids whose
parents smoke are twice as likely to
light up themselves when older. Quit
now to break the cycle.
With all the time commitments and
craziness that come along with raising
children, how can you handle giving up
smoking now? Cigarettes may seem
like an integral part of every aspect
of your life—influencing your identity,
your choice of friends, the structure
of your day, and the way you manage
to squeeze in a little “me” time.
“I used to look forward to my ‘good
job’ cigarette after my kids’ bath and
bedtime rituals, and I was convinced
I couldn’t make it through without it,”
says Laura Lathan, of Phoenixville,
Pennsylvania, whose daughters are 6
and 4. But when she quit last February,
she found that she actually had more
energy for the evening routine.
It’s understandable to worry about
what will replace a drag during those
times when your kids are acting up,
you’re late to work, or you’re panicked
about your credit-card bills. “But it’s
important not to use parent stress as an
excuse to keep smoking, because you’ll
always have tensions in your life,” says
Jodi Prochaska, Ph. D., a researcher
at the University of California,
San Francisco Tobacco Control
Program. “Smoking doesn’t really
take away your stress—it just relieves
symptoms of nicotine withdrawal. You
can learn healthier ways to cope.”
Face the Facts
Not only does smoking cause lung
cancer and heart disease, but many
of the 4,000 chemicals in cigarettes
increase your risk of stroke, breast
cancer, secondary infertility, low back
pain, and heartburn (and then there
are the premature wrinkles and bad
breath). If you think you’re healthy, ask
your doctor to do a spirometry test
that measures your lungs’ functional
age. Many 35-year-old smokers have
the lungs of a 70-year-old.
Inhaling secondhand smoke—which
contains arsenic, carbon monoxide, and
formaldehyde—is undeniably risky for
children. Smokers’ kids have higher rates
of respiratory infection, ear infection,
severe asthma, and even SIDS. “Despite
what you may think, there is no safe level
of exposure for secondhand smoke,”
Get support and personalized advice from the American Legacy
Foundation’s program, Become An Ex, at parentsquitforgood.com.
Your Road to Success
The first step is to set a quit date and
write it on your calendar in ink. Even if
you’re psyched to start today, it’s best
to choose a day between two weeks
and one month from now. Then follow
this series’ essential preparations.
Make a list of your five biggest
reasons for quitting, and read it often.
For five days, keep a log of every
cigarette you smoke, along with
the time of day, the intensity of your
craving, what else you were doing, and
how you felt. Look at your list to see
your most common smoking triggers.
In the days before you quit, try to
separate smoking from those triggers.
For instance, if you have a strong urge
for a cigarette whenever you drink
co ee, wait until you’ve finished your
cup before lighting up.
Think about what you’ll do instead
of smoking. You could treat yourself
to a long shower when your baby naps,
or take the kids for a walk after dinner.
Stock up on sugarless gum, mints,
and raw veggies to keep your mouth
