As if the health benefits associated with kicking the habit aren’t enough. New research has found that quitting smoking can actually help lower stress.

The study, appearing in the journal Addiction, finds that smoking contributes to chronic stress for some people.

Reuters reports that researchers studied 469 smokers who had been hospitalized for serious heart problems, such as a heart attack or bypass surgery. While the participants were still in the hospital, they completed surveys on their perceived stress levels and smoking habits. All agreed to quit by taking part in a clinical trial of smoking-cessation counseling.

At the beginning of the study, 85 percent said they believed smoking helped them deal with stress. One year later, 41 percent of the participants remained smoke-free and showed a 20 percent overall reduction in their perceived stress, compared to those who returned to the habit.

"When dependent smokers cannot smoke, as the period without cigarettes lengthens they tend to feel more and more edgy, irritable and uncomfortable," lead researcher Peter Hajek explained to Retuers. "A cigarette relieves this stressful state, and this is probably the main reason smokers think that smoking relieves stress."

Researchers say their findings support the theory that quitting actually improves mental health.

In addition to acupuncture and hypnosis, natural ways of kicking the habit include taking herbal supplements such as lobelia, St. John’s wort, black cohosh, blue vervain, valerian and peppermint.