Please, don’t vape…not even once! Vaping was marketed as a “safer” alternative to help people stop smoking…. now it’s looking like it’s just as dangerous, if not more so, than smoking!!!
Recently, nearly 100 teens in 14 states, and a total of 193 people in 22 states, reported lung damage after vaping, including 14 hospitalizations in just two states earlier this month. One person in Illinois has died as a result of severe lung injuries linked to vaping.
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The bottom line is that science shows that the use of e-cigarettes is unsafe for kids, teens, and young adults, actually for everyone!
If you’re trying to stop smoking, there are several essential oils that can be used to help you reach your goals!
Reduce the Urge to Smoke
Use these essential oils to help you kick the habit!!!
• Black Pepper – May help curb cravings.
• Clove – May reduce desire to smoke.
• Dill – May relieve withdrawal symptoms.
• Juva Tone – Helps break the habit.
• Thieves – May reduce desire to smoke.
• Peppermint – Simulates menthol taste of cigarettes.
Smoking is a multi-faceted habit. You not only become addicted to the nicotine (and the other addictive fillers that may be incorporated into the brand you smoke), but you also develop the habit of raising the cigarette to your mouth and also breathing deeply.
Breathing deeply when stressed is actually a good thing, but let’s make a resolution to do it without that cigarette in your mouth!!!
When you crave a cigarette:
• Place a drop of peppermint or wintergreen (diluted with carrier oil) on the palm of your hand.
• Make a fist and bring it to your mouth, inhale through the “tunnel” in your fish as deeply as if you are taking a puff from a cigarette and then slowly exhale.
• The body movement of raising your fist to your mouth is a gesture somewhat similar to raising a cigarette to the mouth, so that is very helpful.
• When you inhale through the “tunnel” it simulates the feeling of drawing on a cigarette.
• The peppermint essential oil gives you the refreshing taste you’re used to from your menthol cigarettes.
Make Your Own Blends Tailored to Your Specific Needs
Identify what your particular withdrawal symptoms feel like. Do you feel anxious, nervous or angry? Or perhaps during the period of quitting, you feel lethargic.
During efforts to quit smoking, you may want to reach for the uplifting aroma of citrus oils. Their clean smell, especially that of lemon, will help you begin to feel smoke-free more rapidly.
Blends that include especially calming oils like Roman Chamomile, Clary Sage or Ylang Ylang can be helpful with the initial anxiety felt during withdrawal.
Multiple studies have shown essential oils can help you to quit your addiction.
According to Jane Buckle’s Clinical Aromatherapy – Essential Oils in Healthcare, there have been several studies done on the effects of essential oils on nicotine cravings. In the most recent study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 20 people who were daily users of nicotine products (cigarettes, snuff, or chewing tobacco) were asked to try aromatherapy instead.
They were divided into two separate groups and given an essential oil (either black pepper or angelica) and given instructions to place one drop of essential oil on a tissue and inhale this for two minutes (roughly the amount of time it takes to smoke a cigarette) whenever they felt the urge to use tobacco. The test subjects reported back with their experiences and they found that both essential oils effectively curbed cravings, but they provoked different responses.
It was reported that the intensity of their cravings were reduced dramatically after inhaling black pepper essential than they did with angelica essential oil, but inhaling angelica essential oil helped to delay their next nicotine hit for longer than the pepper. Combined, they effectively helped to curb the cravings for longer.
Another study, by Rose and Behm found “the vapor of black pepper essential oil, when inhaled, partially reproduces the respiratory tract sensations experienced when smoking, thereby reducing the craving for cigarettes.”
Essential oils are NOT a cure to your addiction, but can be an AID to help you quit smoking!
It is important to note that I am not giving you a cure-all prescription for quitting.
This “Butt Kicker” aromatherapy blend is designed to help relieve some of the symptoms you might experience while quitting cigarettes, as well as to help uplift the mood, and extend the period of time you can go without a cigarette.
You can use this for both quitting “cold turkey” or while slowly reducing your nicotine intake weekly. This blend is safe to use in conjunction with other nicotine replacement aids (such as the patch or chewing gum). I would not use Chantix with this aromatherapy blend, there is no telling how it might interact.
Butt Kicker – Essential Oil Blend
It is highly recommended to quit smoking if you are pregnant or nursing. If you are pregnant and trying to quit smoking, you can use this blend too! Simply substitute lavender for the clary sage and use half as much as recommended, when diffusing or using topically.
BUTT KICKER BLEND INGREDIENTS
40 drops black pepper essential oil (Piper nigrum)
20 drops clary sage essential oil (Salvia sclarea)
30 drops bergamot essential oil (Citrus bergamia)
30 drops grapefruit essential oil (Citrus paradisi)
10 drops roman chamomile essential oil (Anthemis nobilis)
20 drops sweet marjoram essential oil (Origanum majorana)
24 drops coriander essential oil (Coriandrum sativum)
Empty 15ml essential oil bottle
DIRECTIONS
1. Combine essential oils in a 15 ml amber glass bottle. Swirl the bottle gently to mix. Fill the bottle the rest of the way with carrier oil. Store in a cool dark place with your other essential oils, when not using!
How to use the Butt Kicker essential oil blend:
You could use this blend diluted in a roll-on bottle for topical application, but this blend is most effective using with deep inhalation.
1. Aromatherapy Inhaler – This is my favorite choice for what we’re using this blend for. Aromatherapy Inhalers are perfect to keep on hand in your back pocket or purse, for whenever the need to take a whiff arises! The best part is you’re the only one who smells your personal inhaler, so the essential oils used will not offend anyone around you! To use, place 25-30 drops of the essential oil blend into a small glass bowl. Add the cotton pad to the bowl and roll it around (using tweezers, not bare fingers) until it’s soaked up all the essential oils. Using tweezers, remove pad and place in inhaler tube. After closing the inhaler tube, be sure to label it so that you don’t forget which blend it is! You can pull the inhaler out and take a few deep inhalations for up to 2 minutes (the amount of time it roughly takes to smoke a cigarette) whenever you are feeling a craving.
2. Smelling Salts – This is just another way to keep a sniffer around with you on-the-go. In a 10 ml (1/3 oz.) glass bottle, add 30 drops of Butt Kicker essential oil blend and fill the remainder of the bottle with either fine or coarse sea salt. Waft the bottle under your nose while taking deep inhalations for up to 2 minutes (the amount of time it roughly takes to smoke a cigarette), whenever you feel a craving.
3. Diffuser – This blend works really well in the diffuser when you are at home or in your office. Using the recommended amount of drops for your diffuser, diffuse this blend throughout the space that you are occupying. Diffuse for 30 minutes ON and 60 minutes OFF so as not to get oiled out!
Are you ready to try quitting? You can do it!!!
Black Pepper Essential Oil
I haven’t found a significant amount of empirical evidence that documents what essential oils may help curb nicotine addition. However, in her book Aromatherapy Science, Maria Lis-Balchin mentions a small study that may indicate that cigarette cravings may be decreased by inhaling Black Pepper Essential Oil.
Studies showed that essential oil of black pepper significantly reduced craving for a 3-hour session.
Inhalation of vapor from black pepper extract reduces smoking withdrawal symptoms. Rose JE, Behm FM.Nicotine Research Laboratory (151-S), V.A. Medical Center, Durham, NC 27705
Previous studies have suggested that sensory cues associated with cigarette smoking can suppress certain smoking withdrawal symptoms, including craving for cigarettes. In this study we investigated the subjective effects of a cigarette substitute delivering a vapor of black pepper essential oil. Forty-eight cigarette smokers participated in a 3-h session conducted after overnight deprivation from smoking. Subjects were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: one group of smokers puffed on a device that delivered a vapor from essential oil of black pepper; a second group puffed on the device with a mint/menthol cartridge, and a third group used a device containing an empty cartridge. Subjects puffed and inhaled ad libitum from the device throughout the session during which no smoking was allowed. Reported craving for cigarettes was significantly reduced in the pepper condition relative to each of the two control conditions. In addition, negative affect and somatic symptoms of anxiety were alleviated in the pepper condition relative to the unflavored placebo. The intensity of sensations in the chest was also significantly higher for the pepper condition. These results support the view that respiratory tract sensations are important in alleviating smoking withdrawal symptoms. Cigarette substitutes delivering pepper constituents may prove useful in smoking cessation treatment