SHARE:

Email AHRQ

Print

77. For the Patient Who Has Recently Quit (Continued)

Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence: 2008 Update

Text version of slide presentation.

Text description is below image

Addressing problems encountered by former smokers (Continued)

Weight gain

Recommend starting or increasing physical activity.
Reassure the patient that some weight gain after quitting is common and is usually self-limiting.
Emphasize the health benefits of quitting relative to the health risks of modest weight gain.
Emphasize the importance of a healthy diet and active lifestyle.
Suggest low-calorie substitutes such as sugarless chewing gum, vegetables, or mints.
Maintain the patient on medication known to delay weight gain (e.g., bupropion SR, NRTs, particularly 4 mg nicotine gum, and lozenge).
Refer the patient to a nutritional counselor or program.

Smoking lapses

Suggest continued use of tobacco use medications, which can reduce the likelihood that a lapse will lead to a full relapse.
Encourage another quit attempt or a recommitment to total abstinence.
Reassure that quitting may take multiple attempts and use the lapse as a learning experience.
Provide or refer for intensive counseling.

Previous Slide Contents Next Slide

Page last reviewed October 2014

Page originally created September 2012

Internet Citation: 77. For the Patient Who Has Recently Quit (Continued). Content last reviewed October 2014. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD.
https://www.ahrq.gov/prevention/guidelines/tobacco/clinicians/presentations/2008update-full/slide77.html