A study conducted by researchers from the University of Adelaide in Australia showed that regular physical activity helps in quitting cigarettes and reducing cravings for smoking.
Researchers reviewed the results of 59 studies on exercise and its impact on cigarette addiction, involving more than 9,000 people, and assessed the effect of both individual exercise and long-term exercise programs on quitting smoking, on the intensity of cravings for cigarettes, and on withdrawal symptoms after quitting smoking.
It was found that people who regularly engaged in physical activity had a 15% higher probability of quitting smoking altogether, and a 21% higher probability of abstaining from smoking for at least seven consecutive days. Moreover, participants who exercised reduced their daily smoking rate by two cigarettes, and even a single exercise session reduced the urge to smoke for approximately 30 minutes after it ended.
According to the researchers, physical exercise should not replace proven methods for quitting smoking such as drug therapy and expert counseling, but it can be a simple and accessible addition that helps overcome the most difficult moments during attempts to quit smoking.
Smoking is considered one of the most dangerous causes that lead to an increased risk of lung and mouth cancer, and cardiovascular diseases, as well as its risks to brain health and the nervous system in general.
