Most Physicians Say It Takes 5 to 7 Attempts to Quit Smoking. Here’s Why They’re Wrong

It might take more tries than you think to finally stop smoking for good: Smokers may need close to 30 quit attempts before they finally succeed, new research in BMJ Open found.

That’s well above the 5 to 7 benchmark that physicians usually refer to.

The 5 to 7 estimate comes from how many quit attempts former smokers actually remember having taken in their lives, says the study’s lead researcher Michael Chaiton, Ph.D.