Back to top. For the vast majority of people, the health benefits reaped from quitting smoking far exceed any health costs associated with weight gain. Back to top. However, nicotine does increase the body's metabolic rate by 100 to 150 calories a day so a person who stops smoking loses nicotine's ability to burn off those extra calories. Back to top.
Research shows that it makes little difference.
The rationale for gradually tapering off has usually been to decrease the smoker's physical dependence on nicotine. This assumes that, as the smoker decreases the number of cigarettes he or she smokes, the intake of nicotine declines. That does not always happen, however, because smokers tend to compensate for smoking a smaller number of cigarettes by puffing more frequently, inhaling more deeply, and smoking more of the cigarette. Therefore, a smoker can decrease the number of cigarettes but still maintain a constant level of nicotine intake. Other more gradual quitting programs involving behavioral interventions also work very well.