50 Restaurants offer smoke-free patios in the City of Riverside

In 1986, I went to a four star restaurant in Laguna Beach. As we sat down, I noticed that no one was smoking and there weren't any ashtrays on the table. I went into immediate panic of not being able to smoke there. I wanted to leave but the waiter assured me that I could smoke and brought me an ashtray.

Today, I wouldn't sit anywhere if smoking is allowed. I recently attended an event at one of the local casinos. The meeting room was on the second floor in a non-smoking area, but the smell of tobacco reeked throughout the room. I almost had to leave because of a headache and nausea just from the smell. Smoking in restaurants and most places of employment is now banned and California has come a long way in protecting employees of restaurants from secondhand smoke. But smoking is still allowed outside on patios.

Fifty restaurants in the City of Riverside have pledged to protect their employees and customers from secondhand smoke by making their patios smoke-free also. This free campaign is sponsored by the Tobacco Control Project, within the Riverside County Public Health Department. For more information or to add your restaurant to the list contact James Jo at  951 358-4768 or by email at  jjo@rivcocha.org.


In California, less than 12% of the population smokes. It time for the non-smoking majority to be able to enjoy outdoor dining experiences without having to smell smoke and it's time to further protect the waiters and waitress who work in that environment. Second hand smoke is responsible for 53,000 deaths each year from heart disease and cancer. It is more than just a nuisance and I'm glad  more smoke-free options are now available.

Another reason why quitters gain weight when becoming smoke-free

 I've been saying for 20 years that once you quit, you may feel hungrier than when you smoke and there is a study that proves it. Nicotine binds to receptors in the brain that tell you when to stop eating.
There are other reasons why quitters will gain weight but a comprehensive quitting plan will include weight management for those concerned. Here is the chapter about avoiding weight gain from my new book: Crushing your Butts, An Effective Five Step Process to Stop Smoking and Stay Quit Forever:

Avoiding weight gain

For over 60 years smoking has been promoted as a way to stay thin and slim and many smokers are concerned about gaining weight after quitting. But not all smokers gain weight after quitting, some lose weight and others want to gain weight because they are too thin and underweight and haven’t been able to maintain a normal weight.

So whether you want to gain weight or avoid gaining, weight management should be a part of your comprehensive plan. Even if you are not concerned before quitting, any gain in weight can highlight it and bring weight to your attention.

For quitters that have gained more weight than wanted, it becomes a cause of relapse by saying, “I’ll lose the weight and then try quitting again.” But often the weight stays, and they are back to smoking. A better way is to have weight control integrated into your quit plan.

Both men and women can use smoking as way to control weight and both can worry about gaining after quitting. However, it seems in our society that women are more conscious about gaining weight than men. For some women, the fear of gaining weight is so strong, they will not even attempt to quit. These women are more likely to view their body negatively as to either their size or shape and view themselves as being heavier or less attractive when compared to non-smoking women.

Yet when quitting, women seem to control weight gain easier than men. It may be that if there is a concern, women have planned how to deal with it while making their quit plan, whereas men are often unprepared for their waist size to increase. It also could be that the actual weight gain is less than what the person perceives it is going to be. Women, who quit, often find they gain less weight than anticipated and are able to adjust. Men are more likely to relapse from gaining weight after quitting, probably because they are not prepared.

Usually the most weight is gained in the first six months after quitting and stabilizes within a year. Cessation medications can help reduce the amount of weight gained when quitting. It may be necessary for those with weight concerns to stay on medications for a longer period of time. The average weight gain is about 10 to 12 pounds but you need to gain 50 to 100 pounds of fat to do as much damage to your body as one pack of cigarettes.