A Turkish man discovered a drastic anti-smoke device for the smoking squad. Have you ever heard of copper cages that can prevent smoking? Neither did we until we stumbled upon this story of Ibrahim Yücel who was desperate to give up his bad habit. Yücel's bizarre idea caught people's attention. Disappointed with his own willpower, Yücel not only locked his face in a copper cage but handed the keys to the cage to his family. After all, the temptation can hit anytime and he was desperate to get rid of the habit. This video from 2014 has resurfaced again and has been shared by many on social media.

It is interesting to know where this iconic inspiration came from. The then 42-year-old chain smoker revealed he was inspired by another successful health campaign—the safety helmets worn by motorbike riders. According to Hürriyet Daily News, Mr. Yücel had been smoking two packets of cigarettes a day since age 16. Woah! Yücel hails from the town of Kütahya in Turkey. The unconventional and labor-intensive idea of a cage may not sound easy but it was definitely one of the options to quit smoking and there's no harm in it.  

Though we do not know how successful Yücel has been at quitting smoking by caging his head, at least he gave a shot and his determination has inspired many. We are in awe of his conviction, too, but sadly, his drive came from a loss. His father died of lung cancer and since then, he had been desperate to give up smoking for his own good health and his family's well-being.

As they say, old habits die hard and it so happened with Yücel. He tried several ideas to quit smoking but failed at every attempt. When nothing worked, inspired by the motorbike helmets, he designed the 'cage style' helmet for his face. The idea was to prevent his hands from reaching his mouth with a cigarette. The birdcage-like helmet was designed with 130 feet of copper wire. Every morning he headed off to work wearing the metal headgear and took careful measures. But to design and don it was not enough. Getting rid of an age-old habit demands strong willpower and that's where Yücel was unsure. 

So he made another decision to leave the helmet's keys with his family. It was a masterstroke that prevented him from breaking his vow to himself. Of course, it did not come naturally to his family as well. Initially, his wife and other family members were reluctant about his weird get-up but they reckoned this might be the way to help him get rid of smoking once and for all. So they supported the man with full faith in his determination. The neighbors took a while to accept Yücel's new look, and they ultimately got used to the sight of his head encased in a metal helmet. Smoking aside, eating became another problem for Yücel. He could only eat small things through the cage—anything that could get in through the wires. It meant that the family had to unlock him every time he had to eat a proper meal. Anyhow, what may work for some may not work for others. And you won't know until you try for yourself.