How come poeple put on weight when they've stopped smoking?

[jeanette1976]

Is it because they constantly eat for something to do? If thats the case, then I'll just take seeds and fruit to work, but if there is some other reason, can you please let me know as I'm desperate to pack in.

By the way, the weight-gain isn't the reason I haven't stopped in the past... I was just curious!

[Sphinx_Svens]

Smoking sppeed up your metabolism ... but it's also craving having something stuck in your gob too

[Trotbot]

A number of factors conspire together. Nicotine is an appetite suppressant, so you don't feel as hungry when you smoke. When you quit, your taste buds remember what food can taste like, so you want more. Smoking is a habit, and your hands are used to stuffing things in your mouth, so sweets are am obvious substitute.
I gave up 2.5 years ago after 20 years smoking. As a diabetic, I couldn't binge eat. I used patches and the absolute desire to start a family free of smoking. I also ate quite a lot of carrots.

[JamesEverton]

I found that my metabolism slowed down when I gave up smoking. During the first couple of days I possibly snacked a bit more than I normally would. After that I was conscious of not eating more than I had prior to quitting (and also drank less as wanted to keep away from the pub for a bit) and my weight still increased.

I've given up and relapsed a couple of times (been two weeks now without a cigarette). People always say that you suddenly start to taste food again when you give up, but I've never found this to be the case. Not sure if I'm just odd or if the taste thing is just a rumour put about by zealous ex-smokers to make those still smoking feel bad.

I guess that everyone's different in the way that they react. Having fruit/seeds is probably as good a plan as any. Also, try to drink a lot of water. If you don't exercise much it might be a good time to start as this should speed up your metabolism. Not sure if what I've said sounds that encouraging... having given up before, I can tell you that it's nowhere near as difficult as you think it will be, though.