Commercial Drive - East Vancouver Chiropractor; Dr. Dominic Chan DC - "Trying to Quit Smoking?......Try Some Veggies!"

This recent article came out extolling yet again the health benefits of eating fruits and vegetables. But not in the way that you might think. Researchers from the University at Buffalo found a link between eating lots of fruit and veggies and maintaining a tobacco-free lifestyle in smokers. This article published in the journal of Nicotine and Tobacco Research, included 1000 participants. The researchers had the participants answer surveys regarding their fruits and vegetables intake and smoking habits. 

What the researchers found was that there was a positive correlation between a participants fruits and vegetables intake and the likelihood that they had quit.......and stayed away, from tobacco. To go further, the researchers also noticed that those who ate the most produce, were about 3 times more likely to also have reported not smoking at all in the last month!

Now it's not possible to draw a direct correlation between consumption of produce and smoking cessation, but it does make you wonder about what the relationship is. Some possible explanations are; perhaps those who ate more fruits and vegetables have made a concerted effort to become healthier in all aspects of their lives? Thus motivating them more intensely to quit smoking. Perhaps, the consumption of more fruits and vegetables increases a person's intake of fiber. Making them feel more 'full' and more likely to ignore the craving to light up? Another interesting possibility posed by researchers is that eating more fruits and vegetables can actually alter the body and brain's biochemistry! Meaning, eating more produce actually made cigarettes taste WORSE and thus less enjoyable for the smoker!

 "With a few modifications to their diet -- consuming items that make cigarettes taste bad, such as a cold glass of milk, and avoiding items that make cigarettes taste good, like a pint of beer -- smokers can make quitting a bit easier," Joseph McClernon, Ph.D commented.


Wow, that idea is truly fascinating indeed. Now whatever mechanism is at work, the overall benefit of quitting smoking is undeniable. But to think that eating more fresh fruits and vegetables could aid in your attempts to quit, is fantastic on so many levels!


Please leave your questions or comments here if you like or if you're in the Commercial Drive neighborhood of East Vancouver, stop by the office. Click the link to visit the website; COMMERCIAL DRIVE - EAST VANCOUVER CHIROPRACTOR; DR. DOMINIC CHAN DC