Engaging in exciting or self-expanding activities, such as puzzle-solving, games, or hobbies with one’s partner can reduce craving for nicotine, helping smokers kick the butt, a new study found.

Researchers including Arthur Aron, a professor in the Department of Psychology at Stony Brook University, based the findings on a neuro-imaging study using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning that measures brain activity by detecting changes in blood flow.

The fMRI scanning looked at the brains of nicotine-deprived smokers who engaged in a series of two-player co-operative games with their relationship partners during the actual time of the scanning.

“Our study reveals for the first time using brain imaging that engaging in exciting or what we call ‘self-expanding’ activities, such as puzzle-solving, games, or hobbies with one’s partner, appears to reduce craving for nicotine,” said Aron.

“The self-expansion activities yielded significantly greater activation in a major reward region of the brain, which is associated with addictive behaviours, than did non-expanding conditions.

Aron and lead author Xiaomeng Xu, assistant professor of Psychology at Idaho State University, says that because engaging in self-expanding activities clearly stimulates the same pathways in the brain that are activated by nicotine, they could substitute for the reward the brain receives from nicotine.

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