The statistics are frightening: Every second smoker dies from it. Even though many people are frightened by this reality, they often experience difficulty in stopping smoking.
Maybe you’re not ready to quit right now, but you can still limit the effects of smoking by helping your body to rid itself of the toxic substances from cigarettes.
Here’s a list compiled by Dr. Jacques Labescat, an expert in herbal medicine and author of Those Plants that Write History. These steps will help clean your lungs, which are clogged by nicotine and the more than 4,000 other harmful agents in tobacco smoke!
1. Take a Bath
To help your body get rid of those harmful substances, take a detox bath with rosemary. This helps detoxify the body. The bath helps to open the pores of the skin, aiding the removal of deeply entrenched toxins. Add 3 tablespoons of rosemary to 3–4 liters of hot water and simmer for 10 minutes. Pour this infusion into your bath and lay in it for 15–20 minutes.
2. Drink Infusions
Try to drink two cups of a purifying herbal tea every day. A good herbalist will be able to prepare this lung-protecting tea for you. Just give him or her the following recipe:
- Rosemary to detoxify the body
- Mallow, a plant rich in mucilage, to promote the production of mucus (and protect the nose and bronchi, which are destroyed by smoking)
- Artichoke to remove toxins through the gall bladder and liver
- Dandelion to promote urination, which will drain toxins
3. Purify Your Body
Nettle is one of nature’s miracles. It cleanses and mineralizes the body. This herb contains more than 200 different components, including trace elements and minerals. In winter, you should prepare nettle soup as often as you can! You can also take nettle in capsule form or even eat it with salad! Spirulina is also very good to get a boost, and offsets the demineralizing effects of smoking by providing good amounts of amino acids and iron. This is ideal if you’re vegetarian or vegan.
4. Consume Turmeric
Turmeric is a powerful anti-carcinogenic, especially against lung cancer. It’s a natural antioxidant that helps fight against cell deformation by promoting cancerous cells to self-destruct. Take it in capsule form, but choose a formulation with black pepper, because this multiplies its effects. You could also use it as a spice in your cooking.
5. Have a Short But Intense Workout
Just like in the saying, “spit your lungs out.” This kind of workout helps you to set your alveoli free.
How Can You Reduce The Desire To Smoke?
If you’re not ready to quit smoking right away, you can still smoke less. If you can, avoid smoking every day. According to reputable studies into smoking, if you smoke three cigarettes a day, you will have the same long-term health risks as someone smoking 10 cigarettes a day. If you can smoke a cigarette from time to time, such as smoking a few cigarettes during an evening, it will be much less harmful. This is because the cells have time to regenerate between exposure to smoke. To reduce the urge to smoke, Doctor Jacques Labescat recommends taking valerian capsules, because valerian saturates the addiction level of the hypothalamus receptors and reduces the urge to smoke. Also, find a “substitute” to keep your mind off it, such as chewing gum. Finally, you can smoke something else, such as switching from cigarettes to cigars or a pipe. This avoids the urge of smoking and helps you to reduce consumption and finally stop permanently.
Don’t forget that it’s not just the lungs—you’re killing your entire micro-circulation. This means you’re polluting all your vital organs—including the liver, heart, brain, and eyes—by smoking.
