Better Life: As Cigarette Taxes Rise, 5 Tips on How to Quit

| Print Post This | Like (0) | Comments (1)

HERE'S GOOD NEWS for smokers in Washington: Starting Thursday, our cigarette tax — already one of the highest in the country — leaps up another 50 cents, so the average pack will cost about $7.50. No smile on your face? That's probably because you didn't realize that with every 10 percent increase in price, cigarette consumption drops 4 percent.

And Elbert Glover — director and founder of the Center for Health Behavior Research at the University of Maryland College Park School of Public Health — says a nudge can be a powerful thing. "Any time is a good time to quit. But a little motivation, from a heart attack or cost becoming too prohibitive, helps. You can take advantage of the teachable moment," he says.

But if quitting were easy, most people would have done it already. So, Glover has five tips to ease the process: Set a quit date and stick to it; get support and encouragement; learn new behaviors to reduce stress; get medication (and use it correctly); and, finally, be prepared for relapse.

If the inhaler, patch, gum, lozenge and even pills (such as Chantix) fail you, consider calling up Glover's subject recruitment line (301-405-0128). The center is about to start phase three trials for a nicotine vaccine. The series of injections may be able to prevent nicotine molecules from crossing the brain barrier and setting off those surges of dopamine that keep smokers puffing.