By Bobbi Burger Brunoehler of BobbisBargains
Evil_Erin/Flickr
Although cigarette smoking has become less cool than it used to be, there are still millions of people who are addicted to a $5-$8/pack a day habit. You have already heard smoking is bad for your health. I’m here to tell you it is bad for your budget, just as BargainBabe.com blogger Mike Barclay did last month. This post is for anyone who is a smoker or knows a smoker who really wants to stop.
First of all, let me tell you that I was a THREE pack a day smoker. How can anyone smoke that much? If you live on cigarettes and coffee and have a cig burning at all times. I know about smoking and quitting smoking.
A recent study found the cost of cigarettes nationwide is $5.28, plus local taxes. There are places online where you can buy them for less (no…. I am NOT going to put a link.) How much does your pack-a-day habit cost?
365 x $5.28/pack = $1,927
Egad! I’ve has passed out from excessive waste of money. Over twenty year’s time, that would be $38,544 or enough to put a 20% down payment on a $192,720 home.
I wouldn’t write this if I didn’t know about a solution. Allen Carr wrote a book called The Easy Way to Stop Smoking
Carr’s book has sold over 12 million copies so you can certainly find a copy for free through Freecycle or a paperback swap site. Carr’s website has celebrity testimonials on the power of this simple, yet extremely effective method to quit smoking. Check out Carr’s website and book if you truly want to quit smoking.
Have you quit smoking? What method worked for you?
April 28th, 2010 at 12:41 pm
Cold Turkey. The horrible cravings only lasted about a week.
April 28th, 2010 at 1:43 pm
Thank you BB for outlining how people can stop smoking and save money at the same time! My grandparents were retired and struggling to buy my grandfather’s 2-pack-a-day 50-year habit, which actually ended up contributing to the death of both of them (he died of a stroke after months of mini-strokes, she died of 2 cancers including lung cancer after 11 months on hospice). No one should have to die like that in their “golden years”, esp. when money is so often tight. I hope people read what you wrote and do the right thing for themselves!
April 29th, 2010 at 3:54 am
I had just started trying to quit ,and I found that book, and it helped me, it took me about a month before I stopped thinking about them,and when I did, I just said out loud ,I want a smoke! Then give it 3 minutes, the craving goes away… I was a 2 pk a day,and paying about 3600.00 a year for the pleasure of killing myself! And those were the cheap ones too, I watched my Dad die of lung cancer,and that should have done it for me,but it took my daughter going through her own crisis to wake me up and say if she can do that I can quit.
April 29th, 2010 at 8:08 pm
Thanks BB. I’ll be passing this around. The best way to quit smoking is never to start in the first place. Recently someone asked me – how much do cigarettes cost these days? I answered: “How much is your health and life worth?”
April 30th, 2010 at 4:59 pm
Good day, I love all your posts, keep them coming.