When you stop smoking, weight gain can be scary. However, by paying attention to your diet, it is possible to avoid gaining weight.
- Weight gain when stopping smoking is not systematic.
- It is advisable to pay attention to your diet to limit weight gain.
- Exercising is also important for burning calories and managing stress.
Some took advantage of month without tobacco to stop smoking. A decision that is often difficult to make, for several reasons: lack, fear of the stress caused, of not being able to do it, but also of weight gain. However, with a good diet, it is entirely possible to limit weight gain.
Weight gain linked to stopping smoking
“Nicotine acts on hormones linked to the feeling of satiety, explains Anne-Laure Laratte, dietitian nutritionist specializing in addiction, at HuffPost. This is what we are talking about when we say that cigarettes have an “appetite suppressant” effect. When a heavy smoker quits overnight, this effect disappears but it takes between three and four weeks for the satiety hormones to resume their role, and the body can once again regulate hunger and its absence. For a few weeks after stopping, it may therefore be difficult to know when to stop eating, for example.”
Another problem: compensation. Indeed, when a person stops smoking, they are often tempted to compensate with food, for example, replacing their cigarette break with a snack. If this snacking is too heavy and frequent, it promotes weight gain.
Stop smoking: take care of your diet and exercise
Thus, it is advisable, at the same time as stopping smoking, to pay attention to your diet and limit fatty and sugary foods. Replace them with vegetable-based dishes and healthy snacks like dried fruits. But be careful not to eat too much because they remain high in calories: almost 500 kcal per 100 grams of a mixture of dried fruits and grapes.
“No food is prohibited, it is important to emphasize this, indicates Anne-Laure Laratte. Some people say to themselves “I’m gaining weight, I need to stop eating starchy foods” but that’s never the right reflex. Starchy foods are a source of energy and when we deprive ourselves of them, we can end up taking “revenge” on sweets. I recommend focusing on a balanced plate: having good proteins, cereals – if possible whole – and vegetables. It is by eating as best as possible that we avoid cravings, especially if they are linked to the loss of the feeling of satiety.”
Take the time to eat slowly too, because the feeling of fullness generally arrives 15 to 20 minutes after the meal. So the faster you eat, the more you tend to eat in larger quantities.
Final advice to avoid weight gain during smoking cessation: exercise sport – or physical activity – every day, to burn calories and manage the stress caused by withdrawal.
“To say that quitting smoking causes you to gain 20 kilos is completely false. assures Anne-Laure Laratte. Weight gain when stopping smoking is not systematic. They mainly take place in the first weeks of stopping, and represent on average 5 additional kilos for the people concerned.”
