COMMENT
How I Gave Up Smoking

By David Kuo (TMFDragon)
February 17, 2006

Thank heaven I have given up smoking again!... God! I feel fit. Homicidal, but fit. A different man. Irritable, moody, depressed, rude, nervy, perhaps; but the lungs are fine. ~ A.P. Herbert

It's been almost two years since I last had a cigarette, but quitting the habit hasn't been easy. In fact, the success rate for people who try to give up smoking is appalling low. Generally, it is reckoned that only one in ten smokers who try to give up the habit without help will remain non-smokers for twelve months.

The reason why it is so annoyingly difficult to give up smoking is obvious -- nicotine, which is found in tobacco, is a highly-addictive drug. Consequently, the more you smoke the harder it can be to quit. Now, there are a number of theories about why we get a kick from nicotine. One theory suggests that it stimulates the pleasure centres in our brain, which is why many people don't want to give up the habit even though they are aware of its harmful effects.

It is often said that there is no right way to give up smoking, and I tend to agree. Some people manage it simply by going "cold turkey". This means relying entirely on your will-power to get through the first few weeks, which can be difficult. Others have resorted to acupuncture, hypnotherapy or group therapy to kick the habit.

In my case I adopted a three-pronged approach, and here's how it works.

I accepted that I would need help coping with the physical dependence on nicotine. Consequently, I opted for nicotine replacement therapy, or NRT, which is now available on the National Health Service. Current medical thinking is that NRT can double your chances of kicking the habit. Presently NRT is available in the form of gums, patches, lozenges, sprays and inhalers. Popular brands include Nicorette, which is made by GlaxoSmithKline (LSE: GSK), and NicAssist by Boots (LSE: BOOT). I opted for the gums, and found little to choose between the various brands, though Boots own brand worked out cheaper.

The psychological dependence on smoking proved to be a bit trickier. It meant avoiding routines of a lifetime such as sitting around at the dinner table after meals and frequenting places where other smokers would congregate. Generally, breaking the emotional attachment to smoking can be as difficult as kicking the physical dependence on nicotine. Consequently, I reckoned that I also needed a diversion, which could also act as an objective way of gauging how well I was doing.

I decided to measure the financial benefits of giving up smoking that would also provide me with a buzz. So, every day, I would put the money that I saved from not buying a packet of cigarettes into a glass jar. This money accumulated at a rate of £4 a day or £120 a month! And at the end of each month, I would invest the money in British American Tobacco (LSE: BATS) shares.

As I saw it, smoking can be a tough habit to kick, and BAT's future looked secure as long as there were people who smoked. Interestingly, two years ago, shares in BAT stood at 840p and today they are worth 1,309p. Of course it is unlikely that BAT shares can carry on rising at 25% a year. Nevertheless, my wealth is increasing at a rate of £1,500 a year every day that I can remain a non-smoker!

David owns shares in British American Tobacco and GlaxoSmithKline.