Can Smoking Help With Weight Loss?
Although the numbers of adults who smoke has gone down in countries because of health reasons and smoking bans introduced in the workplace, many women, especially teenagers, take up smoking as a weight control measure.
But is it worth it and how does it work for weight loss?
Smoking has long been linked to weight loss. A St. Louis University study examining elderly nursing home patients found that smokers lost weight faster than non-smokers.
The reason smoking may help with weight loss is because as a stimulant, smoking can increase your heart rate. With every cigarette smoked, the heart will beat as many as twenty times more per minute, according to SmokeFree.gov. This causes the body to burn calories faster and a subsequent increase in metabolism, which prompts weight loss.
While smokers may lose weight, a study by the University of New South Wales and University of Melbourne found much of the weight loss was muscle mass rather than fat loss when testing groups of mice.
Also cigarettes can cause weight loss because of their appetite-suppressing qualities. Smokers will often smoke instead of eating a meal, prompting a loss in weight. On top of that smokers have a reduced sense of taste and smell and do not crave food as much.
While there is a link to smoking helping to control your appetite is it really worth smoking to for the small boost it may give your metabolism?
There are a lot of other healthier ways to boost metabolism, not eating breakfast or skipping any other meal will result in your metabolism becoming slower and slower. If you’re not getting your recommended daily calories your body will go into starvation mode and store every other thing it receives as fat.
And for all you ladies out there who are thinking of taking up the habit even for a short period of time, almost 80% of the smokers gain weight when they quit smoking. An average weight gained by an ex-smoker is around 5-15 pounds and according to a research study, women tend to gain more weight as compared to men in the first year after quitting smoking. So what ever benefits you’ve received will probably only be short lived and you’ll end up in a worse situation that before.
If you weigh up the facts, the dangers of smoking to your health are well documented. Putting on a few pounds in weight is a lot better than having to face a fight against a major illness.
Welcome Back!...Why not Subscribe To EscapeFromFat Now via
RSS Or Have Our Daily Updates Sent To You By
Email.