Question: What do acetic acid, ethyl acetate, ammonia and benzoic acid all have in common? Answer: According to the Wellness Connection at Bowling Green State University, they are just four of the 599 ingredients found in cigarettes.

It’s not just nicotine.

Of those 599 ingredients, studies done by the American Cancer Society prove there are 43 chemicals packed into cigarettes that can cause cancer. With all of this information, many people wonder why smokers everywhere don’t drop cigarettes.

But there’s more to it than just that.

Because of nicotine, the addictive ingredient found in cigarettes, quitting smoking can be as difficult as kicking hard drugs. Although the withdrawal symptoms of these hard drugs are much worse, some chemical dependency counselors believe the addiction to cigarettes is more powerful than cocaine or heroin.

Carrie Belair is one of those counselors. Certified through the state of Ohio as a chemical dependency counselor, she is among the other chemical dependency counselors who believe cigarette addiction is greater than addiction to hard drugs.

“I have seen people with my own two eyes put down crack pipes, put down hypodermic needles for heroin, but they will not let you take away their cigarettes,” said Belair, who works in the Wellness Connection in the Student Health Center. “It is an addiction that is very much underestimated.”

And according to the ACS, although smoking related diseases caused by cigarettes account for 419,000 deaths a year, it is still legal and on the market. Many wonder why.

Among those are members of groups like truth.com or stand.org who strongly advocate the cessation of cigarette smoking. These groups usually target younger people–mostly teenagers–and give scenarios as to how cigarette smoking can be deadly.

Belair, also an advocate for smoking cessation, believes these programs help children and teenagers put down cigarettes and pick up healthier lifestyles. She talked about how these programs defer youths from smoking cigarettes and keep them away, usually for good.

“If we can delay the onset of youths of any substance to later in life, there’s a greater chance that they’re never going to pick it up,” Belair said. “I’m 35 years old. Chances are today that I’m not going to pick up a cigarette after being a non-smoker for 35 years. And a lot of studies have shown that this is effective.”

Along with preventing young people from starting smoking, quitting smoking at a young age as well can bring drastic improvements in a smoker’s health.

Within the course of 15 years, a smoker’s health can return almost back to normal. The sense of taste and smell are among the first to come back, Blair said.

The Ohio Tobacco Use Prevention and Control Foundation breaks down the benefits of quitting at a young age in the span of a year.

TUPCF shows that within 24 hours, the blood pressure, pulse rate and chance of a heart attack all decrease. Carbon monoxide and oxygen levels in the bloodstream return to normal. Within a year, the likelihood of a heart attack is cut in half, and in 15 years, the risk of coronary heart disease is that a non-smoker.

Although these health benefits prove to be promising, it sometimes takes smokers two or three attempts to quit before they finally do. Oftentimes, cravings get in the way so much that it makes those trying to quit feel hopeless. This is when Belair calls upon the “4 Ds.”

These exercises allow for smokers to diverge their attention away from their cravings and onto healthier ways to surpass their urge to have a cigarette.

Smokers are first advised to take a deep breath, the first of the 4 Ds. Next, they should drink plenty of water throughout the day. This replenishes their bodies and allows for cravings to pass. If cravings become too powerful, Belair suggests smokers do something else like exercise.

The fourth attempt should be to delay reaching for a cigarette. Belair advises that the urge to smoke will pass.

“If you know that every night after you eat dinner, you smoke, pick up a hobby, especially something with your hands,” Belair said.

“If you know that every time you walk from Olscamp to Founders you light a cigarette, do something else.”