Tag Archives: smoking

Thank You for Understanding; By Gary Pepper, M.D.


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Debbi and Terri:

The Comments section at metabolism.com is a place where members have the opportunity to get their questions and opinions posted to the homepage for maximum visibility. Every day thousands of people have the opportunity to see what is on your mind. I try not to intervene too much in Comments so people feel free to say whatever…including what may seem negative about the website.
Everyday, Chris (our webmaster) and I review the Comments section several times. I try to find topics that have general interest which I then turn into a blog. I hope you have noticed that many member questions wind up in my main blog. It takes me a lot of time and effort to prepare a meaningful blog post. I also try to choose a wide variety of issues to cover the whole spectrum of metabolic issues, from the Armour Thyroid crisis, to diabetes care, to smoking cessation, weight loss, low testosterone, Vitamin D, estrogen replacement, osteoporosis, adrenal disease etc.
There is a serious shortage of Endocrinologists and the situation is going to get worse before it gets better. At metabolism.com I try to share my experience with as many people as I can even though I can’t get to every question. I regret if it appears I am ignoring anyone’s concerns.

Many of my opinions run counter to the medical establishment so I am not universally appreciated by my peers. But by countering some of the less insightful policies of the medical establishment I think I reach people who have been left feeling hopeless by their healthcare professionals. My next blog on the flaws in the latest Diabetes Treatment Guidelines recently released by my professional society, is probably going to make me even less popular at my next professional meeting.

Many thanks to you and other members of Metabolism.com for your support. And thank you for understanding the mission and limitations of Metabolism.com.

All the best,
Gary Pepper, M.D.

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Maya Sarkisyan Offers Expert Advice on Quitting Smoking and Weight Gain


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Maya has been a long standing guest expert at metabolism.com. In her recent post Maya offers her expert opinion on the debate regarding weight gain (and how to lose it) when stopping smoking.

Maya writes:

I help people to quit smoking using hypnosis in combination with other healing modalities. It is always an individual approach. Not everyone gains weight after quitting, so I have noticed that people who do generally have other underlying health issues, such as underactive thyroid function. Why than smoking keeps the wight down? There are few possible explanations.
1. when you smoked you constantly had something around your mouth, so you ate less.
2.The taste buds are getting desensitized because of the nicotine.
3. according to some Chinese medical sources the nicotine is a very hot substance and upon entering your body it dries up your fluids – vital fluids as well, such as your blood. This is why cardiovascular disease is associated with smoking.

Now when people quit smoking their body has to go through some sort of rearrangement. Food starts tasting better and it is important to start adjusting your diet even prior to the quitting smoking in order to prepare yourself for the long and healthy life. Adding more vegetables and fruits to your diet helps a lot. Drinking lots of water.

Detoxification process is a good approach after quitting to help your body get rid of the gunk accumulated over the years. This way you give yourself a good chance to get back in balance. There are different detox treatments available to do at home and some of them are very mild yet effective.
And, most importantly, taking care of yourself helps to get you healthier in all aspects.

Thank you Maya for your comments. You can find more of Maya Sarkisyan’s articles at https://www.metabolism.com/author/Maya-Sarkisyan/. Maya also maintains her own website at www.transentient.com

Teresa and Marion Share Experiences with Weight Gain after Stopping Smoking


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Teresa has plateaued in her effort to lose weight after smoking cessation. Marion offers her support in what is often a frustrating battle to rev the metabolism back up.

Teresa’s story is as follows:

Hey everybody. I quit smoking 3 months ago [7/25/09] and have gained 10-12 lbs [depending on the time of day I weigh, water retention, etc…n} I’ve been doing the the calories in/calories out thing for a year n a half to loose weight… One of my biggest fears with quitting was the weight gain, as that was the reason I started smoking in the first place 18 years ago so i tried upping my activity more [went from walking 1 mile 2x a week @ 2 mph to walking 3 miles 4x a week @ 3.5 mph + kickboxing 2 x a week], decreasing my calories, increasing my food [others thought 1200 was too low]… everything…

My issue is that the muscle built from activity is not burning anything and the fat increased [I’m seeing rolls where I never had a problem before and getting BIGGER-gained 2 inches in my waist so far]. Can anyone tell me-really and honestly- how long it will take to level my non-existant metabolism?! I don’t want to start smoking again. But when I’ve worked so hard to loose weight , putting it back on has made me re-hate my body even more than I did before. I have to loose what I’ve gained and more by the summer [I was already the fat bridesmaid even before I quit].

In response to Teresa’s post Marion relates her similar story:

Don’t give up, I quit on June 14 and have gained 25 pounds so far, my husband quit a year ago in July and his metabolism is starting to level off. He gained over 40 lbs. It will take time, but keep it up and you and I will continue to be smoke free. I am very discouraged also but I have to realize that I am more healthy since I quit. I am having problems having energy. Before I would jump out the bed in the morning to smoke and now I only want to sleep all day. No reason to get out of the bed. I have alot of adjusting to do.

Molly Offers Advice to Smokers Who Fear Weight Gain When They Quit.


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Molly has seen the light as far as coping with mood and metabolism changes occurring when getting off cigarettes. Here is her story as posted to metabolism.com:

I smoked regularly (pack a day) for 13 years–from 14 until 27. Then I became a social smoker, smoking occasionally, but not on a regular basis. Now, I haven’t smoked at all for a few months and I am 30. After I quit smoking (at 27) I slowly became very depressed and put on 30 lbs. I wasn’t exercising, but I wasn’t eating more either. Changing the kinds of foods I ate is what helped me lose weight. When I cut out alcohol and switched to a high vegetable (lots of cruciferous veggies) and whole grains diet and started walking, 15 lbs came off quickly. I modeled my diet after one that would lower estrogen levels–high estrogen levels lead to excessive tummy fat and breast cancer. Also, I started taking St. John’s Wort and I think it uplifted my mood. I think everyone who quits smoking should take St. John’s Wort. It’s only side effect is slight sensitivity to the sun and it helps curb the depression quitting can cause. People who quit smoking need to be patient with themselves. Smoking does mess with the metabolism and the people who say calories in calories out are not fully understanding the issue. It might take time for your body to get used to its new way of operating without the constant dose of nicotine. I am proud of all of you who quit smoking. I am really proud of myself. I seriously thought I would never be able to quit. So, good luck with your weight loss, but a few pounds are worth not smoking! And after all of the abuse we gave our bodies, we should focus on loving and appreciating them–even if they are a little chubbier than we would like, they are still beautiful!!!!

Ella Quit Smoking, Gained Weight and Lives to Tell About It


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Ella shares her experience with smoking cessation. When someone succeeds even with a few set backs thrown in, it is great inspiration for others who haven’t quite taken the plunge.

A point of intererst here. I always ask my smokers what their brand is, just to educate myself and look for trends. I find that the majority are Marlboro smokers. Does anyone have an idea why Marlboro is such a popular choice?

Ella writes to metabolism.com with her story:

Yes, thanks to everyone. It was a relief to read all of the posts. I quit one year ago this last 7/7, and I am one of the unlucky ones–from 138 to the 150s. I smoked for 15 yrs and am 32. I run 4-5 miles/week, lift weights and other machines at the gym at least 5 times a week. I was also very active, with boxing, aerobics and other stuff for 5 years prior to quitting. It’s been difficult to deal with 30 pounds. But I am also taking the advice of some of the other posts and gonna come clean about my caloric intake and my ALCOHOL consumption (hey–misery loves company–a smoke in one hand and a drink in the other and now, without one, well keep pouring ….) Anyway, I have taken a month off the hooch pledge and am back on a diet. I am also going to up my 45 minutes at the gym to at least a full hour. Hopefully I will make a dent before the end of the summer.

Yes, thanks to everyone. It was a relief to read all of the posts. I quit one year ago this last 7/7, and I am one of the unlucky ones–from 138 to the 150s. I smoked for 15 yrs and am 32. I run 4-5 miles/week, lift weights and other machines at the gym at least 5 times a week. I was also very active, with boxing, aerobics and other stuff for 5 years prior to quitting. It’s been difficult to deal with 30 pounds. But I am also taking the advice of some of the other posts and gonna come clean about my caloric intake and my ALCOHOL consumption (hey–misery loves company–a smoke in one hand and a drink in the other and now, without one, well keep pouring ….) Anyway, I have taken a month off the hooch pledge and am back on a diet. I am also going to up my 45 minutes at the gym to at least a full hour. Hopefully I will make a dent before the end of the summer.
emdiaz@wm.edu
Ella

Patricia Offers Insight into Smoking and Metabolism


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Patricia offers this blog about her experience with stopping smoking and weight gain. Patricia writes:

Today I googled “smoking and metabolism”… and here I am…. Like most of you, I quit smoking 4 months ago and gained 20 lbs… Prior to quitting I worked out daily for over 3 years burning on average 700 calories during each workout. Since I quit smoking I bumped my cardio up to 50 minutes from 15 and eat healthier/less calories than ever before, which is always under 1200. I count each calorie and follow it faithfully on an app on my iphone. Since January, I have lost about 8 of that 20 gained. I kill myself in the gym and see very little results. I will never go back to smoking, obviously the benefits far outweigh the side effects of quitting, however I will have to agree that Linda’s calories in/calories out theory, which is EXACTLY what I thought when I quit, has not held true for me either…. It is frustrating, depressing and discouraging. I will continue to work just as hard every day and I am glad to know that I am not alone in this fight, but I would love to know WHY. I have been 2 my Dr. twice and he has run the gamut of tests on me. He is baffled as well and attirbutes this issue to the fact that smking has seriously screwed up my metabolism and that it takes on average 6-12 months to see a balance return. He said to just continue doing what I’m doing and wait for my metalism to balance out. It’s hard to be patient!!! Anyway, STAY STRONG FOLKS! Keep working out and eating right. We’re BOUND to see results… WE HAVE TO! LOL! Good luck to all! Here’s to a long, healthy life!

From How Smoking Affects Metabolism, 2009/05/01 at 10:36 AM