To quit smoking, start by switching to a lighter brand of cigarettes and smoke fewer of them each day.

But you can’t do it alone.

That’s the theory behind a new study to begin on campus this Wednesday.

A doctoral student, Holly Cacciapaglia, wants to prove that with the support of a group quitting cigarettes is a reachable goal. The cornerstone of her program to quit smoking will be group discussions.

Cacciapaglia will use the program as a study to complete her doctoral dissertation. She said she’s worked before in similar programs at BGSU.

The quit smoking program will be similar to other health intervention programs on campus, like the annual weight management program, which the psychology department has sponsored for the last four years.

“It’s not just a matter of getting them to quit, but giving them the skills that would help them to stay quit,” she said.

Cacciapaglia describes the program as a “cognitive behavioral approach,” which is a theory that people must actively change their own behavior.

“We’re looking at a lot of things as far as helping them understand their own smoking behaviors,” she said.

Often, the urge to smoke is stress-related, Cacciapaglia said. So the group will discuss alternative stress relief and relaxation techniques. Smokers will identify situations that might tempt them to light up.

“If you realize that you are in particular danger of having a strong urge to smoke while at happy hour on Friday with your coworkers, or after having a stressful day at work, or simply seeing someone smoke, you will be able to anticipate those situations and the effect they may have on you,” Cacciapaglia said.

In the program, smokers will not be quitting “cold-turkey.”

“It’s kind of individualized in a sense,” Cacciapaglia said, “because they are reducing their smoking either by the number of cigarettes or the brand of cigarette they’re smoking.”

First, smokers will cut back by smoking fewer cigarettes daily. For people who may struggle with smoking less, there will be extra support from the group or individual counseling, Cacciapaglia said.

Next, smokers should consider switching to a cigarette brand with less nicotine. The Federal Trade Commission rates cigarette brands by the levels of tar and nicotine they contain.

For example, Merit Ultra Light and Now King cigarettes each have less nicotine than Marlboro, according to the FTC 1998 Tar, Nicotine and Carbon Monoxide Report. Switching to a lower level of nicotine may not always be healthier.

“Smokers of cigarette brands with lower ‘tar’ and nicotine ratings who take larger or more frequent puffs may get as much ‘tar’ and nicotine as smokers of higher rated brands,” according to the FTC report. “. . .There is no such thing as a safe smoke, no matter what the ‘tar’ and nicotine ratings are.”

When a smoker tries to quit, relapses often happen. But the feelings of guilt that come afterward can be more dangerous than the relapse itself. Cacciapaglia calls the guilt that comes with a smoking relapse “abstinence violation effects.”

“If you consider it from a psychological standpoint, feeling upset at yourself kind of increases the likelihood that you’re going to continue to smoke,” she said.

“So a lot of it is learning to control the way that you react and respond to things, and your emotional reaction.”

Volunteers are screened before they may be invited to join the program. Cacciapaglia is screening smokers over the phone by asking about their smoking history and how many cigarettes they smoke a day. Only volunteers who light up 10 or more times a day are eligible for the study.

The study will also exclude people who have a serious mental illness. So, those suffering from bipolar disorder or schizophrenia are not eligible for program.

Also not eligible are those with substance abuse problems. To recognize a drug or alcohol addiction, Cacciapaglia asks four different questions. These questions are taken from the book, “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders,” which experts often use to diagnose psychological disorders.

Group sessions for the quit smoking program begin this Wednesday, April 27. The study is still accepting applicants who call by April 26. There will be other similar programs throughout the summer, Cacciapaglia said. For more information about this or future quit smoking programs at BGSU, e-mail [email protected] or call Cacciapaglia at (419) 308-0445.