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Health News
Exercise makes smoking less attractive
EXETER, England, Oct 26, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- A small study found exercise
can help smokers quit because it makes cigarettes less attractive, British
researchers suggest.
The University of Exeter study involved 20 moderately heavy smokers, who had
abstained from cigarettes for 15 hours before the trial.
Lead author doctoral student Kate Janse Van Rensburg says during two visits to
the laboratory participants began by being shown smoking-related and neutral
images, and then spent either 15 minutes sitting or exercising on a stationary
bike at a moderate intensity. Then they were shown the images again.
As the participants were shown the images, the research team used eye tracking
technology to measure and record precise eye movements.
The study, published in the journal Addiction, shows an 11 percent difference
between the time the participants spent looking at the smoking-related images
after exercise, compared with the after sitting. Also, after exercise,
participants took longer to look at smoking-related images.
Exercise appears to reduce the power of the smoking-related images to grab
visual attention, the researchers say.
URL: www.upi.com
Copyright: Copyright 2009 by United Press International
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