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Pictures may help people stop smoking 

A new study indicates the simple act of looking at, or thinking of, pictures may be helpful in stopping cigarette cravings.

Researcher Jon May, an addiction specialist at Britain's University of Sheffield, told New Scientist: "Cravings start when we create a little picture in our mind of what we want. The images are what makes the cravings tantalizing. You can see in your head what you want, but you can't have it. We tried to interfere with that process."

The researchers asked 40 smokers to imagine either sounds, such as a phone ringing, or images, such as a game of tennis. . . .

May presented the research Thursday during the British Association Festival of Science in Salford, England.

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