Turkish man wears helmet-like head cage to quit smoking

KÜTAHYA - Doğan News Agency

İbrahim Yücel wears a helmet-like wire cage on his head, locked on two sides, in an unusual bid to kick the habit. DHA photo

In an unusual bid to quit smoking, a 42-year-old man in the western province of Kütahya has begun wearing a helmet-like wire cage on his head, locked on two sides.

İbrahim Yücel, who is trying to kick a 26-year habit of smoking two packets of cigarettes per day, gives the keys of his head cage to his wife and daughter when he leaves home every day. In this way, he is unable to open the cage to smoke during the day, even if he craves a smoke.

He says he was inspired to create the helmet-like head cage by observing motorcycle helmets, after trying without success to quit smoking several times in the past. His father died of lung cancer caused by smoking some years ago.

Since donning the head cage two days ago, Yücel has not smoked a single cigarette.

At first shocked by the extraordinary contraption, his family now supports Yücel's determined bid to stop smoking.