Smoking is scientifically proven to be one of the biggest causes of death and illnesses in the US. It has a direct effect on smokers and even on those who are non-smokers through passive smoking.
When you smoke a cigarette a day, the risk of stroke, cancer, and heart diseases is already 2 to 4 times higher in both men and women.
For those reasons, more and more people have become aware of this dangerous habit and decided to quit smoking, including famous people. So, what are their stories and how they did it?
Scroll down to see the list of 11 celebrities who quit smoking successfully!
More...
11 Celebrities Who Quit Smoking
1. Adele
The 10-time Grammy winner - Adele is also a nicotine addict. She used to smoke up to a pack of cigarettes a day and often thought that “People with the best voice always smoke".
But in 2011, this talented singer finally kicked the habit after suffering a vocal cord hemorrhage and experiencing surgery.
2. Barack Obama
Do you know that the first African-American president of the United States - Barack Obama was also a smoker?
As a former smoker, he used to smoke about seven or eight cigarettes a day. People said that quitting nicotine is much more difficult than the heroine; therefore, former President Barack Obama also struggled to stop this dangerous habit.
In 2010, the White House speaker confidently stated that Obama was successfully tobacco-free for almost a year. But how did Obama quit it?
According to John Boehner - the former House speaker, First Lady Michelle Obama was the reason behind it. The former president also used nicotine gum to help reduce the occasional craving to smoke.
3. Mila Kunis
Mila was a chain-smoker, and she even used cigarettes to drop down her weight for the performance in Black Swan. But after suffering from several health effects caused by smoking, she chose to drop it, and now Mila couldn’t be happier about her decision. “It was the best decision I ever made in my life,” Kunis said.
Even though Mila hasn't shared her specific way of successfully quitting this habit, having two babies in a short period seems to be the reason behind it.
4. Gwyneth Paltrow
Before being a health enthusiast, Gwyneth Paltrow was an enthusiastic smoker in her adolescent years. Even after her father’s death from lung cancer in 2002, she was still a heavy smoker that could smoke up to 30 cigarettes a day.
Paltrow eventually quit this habit when she found out she had her first daughter in 2003.
5. Jon Stewart
To fill the emotional void, Jon Stewart took up smoking. He said that smoking made him feel better and gave him a distraction from the burdens of life. But when smoking made him feel better in a short time, it was silently destroying his health in the long run.
Since 2000, Stewart eventually realized this dangerous habit and decided to quit it for a more healthy lifestyle.
6. Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga is opening a new chapter of her life, and it's to quit smoking and lose weight! The singer had finally quit the heavy smoking habit and went “cold-turkey” on it.
During an interview for Apple Music, Lady Gaga said:" I completely quit - I quit cold turkey". But it was so hard. If you don’t smoke, don’t smoke! Because quitting is worse. It is so brutal. And I will never smoke again because I think I saw Jesus for an entire week. It was so awful."
Used to be a chain-smoker who could smoke up to 40 cigarettes a day, Lady Gaga's decision to quit is not easy. But since she found love, her new boyfriend - Michael Polansky, has been a big motivation for Gaga to change her daily habits.
7. Michael Douglas
Despite being a famous elite as an actor and husband of Catherine Zeta-Jones, Michael Douglas also struggled with nicotine addiction.
However, in 2011, he was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor found in his throat.
Since smoking is strongly inhibited during treatment, Douglas made an effort to drop his habit.
8. Halsey
After being a 10-year-smoker, Halsey finally announced to her fan that she had successfully quit smoking.
On Twitter, she shared: “I successfully quit nicotine a few weeks ago after smoking for TEN years. I gained a lot of weight and probably lost some friends forever because I was a NUT (lol), but I’m so happy I did it, and I feel good. I just wanted to share.”
9. Jennifer Aniston
Jennifer Aniston - the star of the TV series “Friends," was a chain-smoker for years. But how did she successfully say goodbye to this harmful habit?
From Yogalosophy - a book of her teacher, she said that Yoga helped her stop craving nicotine. By practicing Yoga every day, Jennifer is no longer a chain-smoker.
10. Keith Richards
Keith Richards - the veteran Rolling Stones guitar performer - revealed that he finally quit smoking in late 2019.
"I've given up smoking ... since October," Richards told Q104.3 New York's Jim Kerr.
However, breaking a habit indeed wasn’t easy. In 2019, Richards said to another legendary rocker, Lou Reed, that “nicotine was harder to quit than heroin.” But he now successfully overcomes the addiction by “cutting down by a substantial amount every day.”
11. Gisele Bundchen
As a model, Gisele maintained her slim figure by following a strict diet and reducing food craving through smoking.
In 2003, she finally kicked off the habit of opening a healthier life for herself and her family and became a great role model for young women. Bundchen says that she gained 15 pounds after giving up smoking, but she was happier with her new body.
Tips on How to Quit Smoking
#1. Make a Plan to Quit Smoking
Set a date, choose a time, then write it down in your journal or on a wall where you can see it every day. By making a promise and a specific deadline for it, you can focus more on your goal.
So, how to make a plan?
First, you need to decide on a specific date that you can finally quit this habit. Second, completing a small goal every day, such as cutting down from 10 cigarettes a day to 9, or spending time with non-smoking people, is also a good idea!
You might also need to think about why you can’t quit and consider your plan to deal with it in advance.
#2. Consider Your Diet
Diet is also a deciding factor when it comes to quitting smoking. A US study revealed that some foods, including meat, make smoking cigarettes after eating feel more satisfying.
Others, including cheese, fruit, and vegetables, make tobacco taste bad on your tongue and reduce nicotine craving. If you want to quit smoking, try to change your diet by switching the usual steak or burger for a veggie pizza instead.
#3. Identify Why You Crave Cigarettes
Have you ever noticed why you became addicted to smoking? What time of the day did you often smoke? Trying to figure out the reasons for your smoking habit will make the quitting process much easier!
In general, smokers tend to pick a cigarette when they feel stressed with the pressure of life. Smokers claim that smoking a cigarette makes them feel much better. But if you can find another way to deal with your stress, the chance you pick a cigarette will be less.
#4. Change Your Mind
After identifying the reason why you love smoking, it is time to change your mindset. We know smoking will make you feel good, but have you ever noticed the negative signs that your body is telling you?
There are more than 4,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke, and many of them harm the destruction of collagen and elastin. Smoking reduces the blood supply to the skin and causes changes in skin elastic.
Furthermore, we can see that people who smoke tend to look older than people who don't.
#5. Keep Your Hand and Mouth Busy
To keep your mouth busy, you can try to chew nicotine gum. By chewing gum, your brain will be distracted from nicotine craving and more focused on the task at hand.
You can also use patches, tablets that release nicotine through your body under your skin. This way, your body can reduce its nicotine needs.
Another tip is when you are out, bring along a bottle of water or anything else to distract your mind from the nicotine craving.
#6. Make a List to Break the Habit
Create a list to remember why you choose to quit and always keep it in your pocket. You can choose whether you quit smoking for your daughter or your wife. But for any reason, be determined on your goal.
Final Thoughts
Quit smoking is not an easy job to do. But we’ve gone through the list of celebrities who quit smoking successfully, so why can't we?
If you do not know how to do it by yourself, don’t hesitate to ask for help from your family and friends.
The first week is the hardest, but once you get through it, everything will be better!
BRAIN-WASHED IN USA BY CIGARETTE INDUSTRY..
I STARTED AT AGE 16….THOUGHT I WAS GROWN-UP.
TEN YEARS LATER MY HUSBAND AND SELF QUIT AFTER A PACK EVERY DAY.
WE ARE 83 AND 84 YRS. OLD