How do you do it? Nicotine gum, cold turkey, taper down? What’s the best way to stop smoking for good?

This question has troubled smokers for decades, but a new major British study seems to have found the answer. Quitting abruptly, commonly known as “Going Cold Turkey” appears to work better than tapering off.

The study conducted by the University of Oxford involved nearly 700 adults smoking approximately 20 cigarettes a day, the group was evenly diversified of men and women and their average age was 49. They were split into two groups, each group set a quit date. The first group was selected to quit abruptly, while the second group was chosen to gradually taper down. Each group was educated on the assistance options, such as nicotine gum or patches.

After “Quit Day” the groups were seen weekly for the next month, and then again at six months. Upon the reviews, the researchers asked how they were doing and measured their carbon monoxide output to check if people were adhering to their quitting plan, quitting being cigarette free for at least 24 hours.

After one whole month, 49% of the cold turkey group was successfully smoke-free. However, only 39% of the tapered group were off cigarettes and successful in their goal. This gave a 25% rate of success for the abrupt group over the tapering group.

Six months after the quit date arrived, the cold turkey group was still 22% smoke-free, while only 16% of the gradual group were still non-smokers.

Two weeks before the quit date, 75% of the tapered group had reduced their usage. The group used nicotine gum, patches, and lozenges to assist in the quitting process. On the other hand, the cold turkey group used only nicotine patches.

It’s clear that breaking the habit is tough, although important for your overall health, and there are so many ways to curb the habit, however, science shows that the most effective way to quitting is to toss the cigarettes and be done with them. Set a date now, and quit.