Artificial Intelligence Will Help Belarusians Quit Smoking

• 28.05.2025, 19:14

A motivational program based on this technology is being created in the RNPC of mental health.

Artificial intelligence will help to quit smoking. A motivational program based on this technology is being created in the RNPC of mental health. Deputy Director of the center for scientific work Marina Skugarevskaya told BelTA.

"Artificial intelligence technology is used, taking into account the peculiarities of interhemispheric asymmetry, i.e. differences in the work of the brain hemispheres," commented the professor.

The program will be supplemented with questionnaires that will help to assess progress, and a motivational video.

Marina Skugarevskaya emphasizes that the main problem of smokers - the lack of a strong desire to quit smoking.

The deputy director of the RNPC refuted the myth that nicotine helps in the fight against stress. On the contrary, it negatively affects the mental state.

"In fact, tobacco contributes to the development of anxiety and depression. People who smoke are more likely to suffer from it. And they don't just have increased levels of anxiety and depression. It goes up to the level of a mental disorder," she said.

It can be especially damaging to the body if you start smoking as a child. Because of this, the development of neural connections is impaired. This badly affects the ability to learn and concentration.

Long-term exposure to nicotine reduces cognitive abilities, and the risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease increases.

With regard to increased anxiety and depression, the mental state can return to normal after a person gives up nicotine.