Research published in the international medical journal Addiction showed that moderate exercise, such as walking, significantly reduced the intensity of smokers' nicotine withdrawal symptoms. Just five minutes of exercise can get the smokers past that need for a nicotine fix.

Nearly anything that distracts people from smoking is thought to help, but scientists have long suspected that exercise might have a more potent effect. Exercise could produce a mood-enhancing hormone dopamine, which could, in turn, reduce the smokers' nicotine dependence.

When you're dying for a cigarette, try some exercises or a walk to get past the craving. Remember, if you are trying to quit, a craving will only last about three minutes!

As if the horrors of breast cancer are not enough -- surgery and recovery, chemotherapy and recovery, radiation and recovery, additional treatments and recovery -- weight gain often comes along and rounds out the full breast cancer package. It is most common for women who have chemotherapy -- the curse is not often seen for women who have surgery alone or surgery followed by radiation -- and while it may seem the lesser of all evils for some women, others may be plagued by an additional battle with weight. In addition to the self esteem blow that breast cancer delivers -- complete with scars and removal of breasts and reconstruction and hair loss -- weight gain in this body-image obsessed era can take its toll. There are also health concerns related to weight gain -- and an excess of weight is reported to sometimes influence a return of breast cancer and can be a risk factor for other cancers too.

The American Cancer Society reports that the average weight gain is five to eight pounds over a year's time -- but that gaining 25 pounds is not uncommon either. This phenomenon is somewhat of a mystery, although there are some theories about why women are at risk for this not-so-pleasant side effect of breast cancer. Some women get nauseated during chemotherapy and don't eat much -- but others have intense food cravings and tend to eat more. Body composition may also change and research shows that chemotherapy possibly diminishes lean body mass and increases fatty tissue. Menopause may also be to blame -- natural and chemically-induced menopause operate the same and both slow metabolism. So it takes more physical activity to burn what less activity accomplished prior to chemotherapy. Women experiencing treatment also tend to exercise less which can contribute to weight gain. And some women fault the Tamoxifen they take following chemotherapy -- although research does not support a strong link between the two. There are many possibilities. Yet none of them are definite. There is one definite, though -- a healthy menu, a healthy exercise routine, and a healthy support team can help women ward off this unfair consequence of an unfair disease.

If you plan to use the nicotine patch to quit smoking, it would be nice to know up front if it's going to work. Because nothing is more discouraging than making an attempt at something and believing you have help -- only to find out the help was no help at all. The problem seems to be in the basic fact that nicotine metabolizes in the body at different rates for different people. The higher the metabolism rate, the more cravings a smoker experiences. The more cravings, the less likely a standard nicotine patch will be effective. Researchers believe that a simple blood test to measure the rate at which a smoker metabolizes nicotine can predict the success or failure outcome of a smoking cessation program using the patch.

"If a prospective study replicates these results, we will be in a position to recommend this blood test to tailor the type and dose of nicotine replacement therapy for smokers who wish to quit," states Caryn Lerman, PhD, Associate Director for Cancer Control at the Abramson Cancer Center and Director of the University of Pennsylvania Transdisciplinary Tobacco Use Research Center.

Here's what I am thinking -- if they know how the body metabolizes nicotine to satisfy the addictive cravings for nicotine, why can't they come up with something that blocks the process before it begins? Thereby making smoking a completely unsatisfactory experience. Just a thought.