0 Smoking and Weight Loss: Does smoking help you lose weight?

“Does smoking help you lose weight?”, I have been sent this question many times, here is the answer:

It is known that the nicotine existent in cigarets has a positive effect on metabolism, it accelerates it making it easier to burn more calories. So, yes smoking helps you lose weight on the long term because of the effect of nicotine on your metabolism. It is important to note that the positive effect of nicotine on metabolism takes a long time to show on your body because at maximum smoking will help you burn 200 more calories each day which is not a high number at all, you can achieve the same results by cutting down one chocolate bar or by reducing your consumption of soda or even better by walking 20 minutes each day.

Another benefit of smoking when it comes to weight loss is that it serves as an oral fixation. People suffering from weight problems usually like to have something in their mouth, a cigaret is a calorie free replacement of food and sugary gums. It is always noticed that smoking decreases your appetite, this explains why people tend to eat lots more after quitting smoking.

It is important to keep in mind that smoking does not cause immediate weight loss. A recent study proves that most teenage girls that smoke for the sole purpose of losing weight witness no weight change for the first weeks. Naturally, the effect of nicotine on the metabolism and of the oral fixation technique on the appetite takes a decent amount of time to bring considerable results, this is why only people who have been smoking for long years are often thinner.

Another important thing to take into consideration while analyzing the effect of smoking on weight loss is the durability of this weight loss, will you keep the pounds you lost because of smoking even if you quit smoking? the answer is obviously NO. Smoking decreases your appetite and increases your metabolism which explains why smokers are usually thinner than their non-smoking counterparts but the positive effect of smoking on weight loss is absolutely temporary. When you follow a healthy diet and lose some weight you don’t gain it back if you eat normal healthy food but when it comes to weight lost from smoking, it will go back in no time after few weeks of quitting smoking because it was not lost using a healthy persistent method and certainly nobody wants to continue the rest of their lives as heavy smokers. People want to lose weight to enjoy a better healthy life not to kill themselves slowly.