Nicotine Replacement Therapy For Tobacco: A Case Study

     Nicotine is addictive! Most smokers use tobacco regularly because they are addicted to the nicotine. You can be addicted to the nicotine in a physical and physological addiction. Addiction is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, even if they are in the risk of health problems. It is well documented that most smokers identify tobacco as harmful and express a desire to reduce or stop using it, and nearly 35 million of them make a serious attempt to quit. Unfortunately, 7% of those who try to quit in their own achieve more than 1 year of abstinence; most relapse within a few days of trying to quit. Some of the other factors besides nicotine addictive properties include its high level of availability, the small number of legal consequences of using the tobacco, and the advertising methods used by companies. What most people do not realize is that the

Another effective way to quit smoking is to ease the amount of nicotine in one’s body as well as decreasing the stress of completely giving up the habit of smoking. A study performed by Bullen and Etter found that 92% of smokers using electronic cigarettes for three months reduced the total number of cigarettes they smoked (as cited in Rahman et al., 2014). The use of an electronic cigarette reduces a smoker’s need for cigarettes since their mechanisms are like an actual cigarette. These devices also deliver nicotine to the smoker when inhaled, as well as the user can choose the dosage of nicotine they’re receiving. Furthermore, an electronic cigarette user can start with a nicotine dose that is measurable to or higher than a cigarette then over time reducing their quantity until the smoker no longer has the desire to be using the nicotine. This decrease in the amount of nicotine will reduce withdrawal symptoms of the person trying to quit smoking, thus decreasing the smokers need to use real cigarettes. Notably, a clinical trial done by Polosa

The addiction to tobacco, nicotine, and smoking is something the humans have embraced and battled since the early 1800’s. With more and more people falling into the habit and becoming addicted, many detrimental health effects on the body caused people to question what was going on and what was causing these negative reactions in the body. Soon enough, the healthy and “cool” cigarettes that everyone was smoking became the face of lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, birth defects, and many other deadly bodily reactions. In the early 2000’s electronic cigarettes (ECs) were developed by a Chinese pharmacist that hoped to allow smokers to maintain their nicotine addiction, but limit or end the harmful and detrimental effects of tobacco on the body, due to his father’s death of tobacco-attributable lung cancer.1 A typical EC consists of a rechargeable lithium battery, a heating tool called an atomizer, which vaporizes a humectant (typically propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, and/or polyethylene glycol 400). The humectant contains liquid nicotine. When the smoker inhales, the heating tool is activated by an airflow sensor, and the nicotine is vaporized.1 2

Smoking is a severe health issue which can results in pain, sickness and depression. Not only does the misuses of tobacco and nicotine have a devastating

Of the roughly 42 million adults in the US that use tobacco, nearly 69% of smokers want to quit and more than 42% of those wishing to quit will make the attempt through various methods(1). These methods range from the "cold turkey" method, nicotine replacement therapy, behavioural therapy and even medicine. Each method has it's unique strengths and weaknesses as well as varying success rates. There are many reasons to quit and many ways in which to do so, either with methods that involve slowly weaning off of nicotine, like gums and patches from replacement therapy, to nicotine-free methods which require support from various sources.

I tried the nicotine patches and gums, but for me, I found that it almost made my cravings worse. The nicotine in these products seemed to make me think about cigarettes more than when I had attempted a cold-turkey quit in the past. I even tried herbs and meditation, but nothing I did seemed to free me from the addiction.

For tobacco addiction, over-the-counter nicotine replacement therapies in the form of patch, lozenge, spray or gum are available. In addition, prescription medications like bupropion and veranicline, which prevent relapse, are used.

Nicotine replacements and patches are always in advertisements and pushed in stores. While the ads may make it seem easy to quit with a nicotine replacement, they are not actually effective. Recent studies show that smoking cessation drugs like patches and gums do not effectively stop nicotine cravings.

As reported by Heather’s, Nicotine contains a large amount of toxic substance which can lead to several causes and effects to health. The substances in nicotine effects on the brain and its addicted. When a person smokes, the nicotine substance travels to the brain within 10 seconds and changes the function of the brain. “Blood that enters the lungs to picks up oxygen also pickup something else – the nicotine”. It also rises the blood pressure by five to ten points and heart rate by ten to twenty beats per minute. However, nicotine also performs as a sense of feeling of pleasure. Nicotine reaches to brain within a speedy rate and disperses soon conversely, its increases use of cigarettes.

These medications are used for heavily dependence on nicotine and are mostly offered as an option because it is safe to use. Bupropion Sr, an antidepressant, can also help the patient with smoking problem and is proven to be effective for withdrawal symptoms. (Edmunds, 2014) A nicotine receptor agonist called Varenicline or Chantix, one of the newest medications in tablet form, which is used in conjunction with other treatments. Asking the patient every visit and informing them about the risk of smoking is recommended which is said to be beneficial during the treatment process (Edmunds,

There have not been any new medications for help with smoking cessation within the last ten to twelve years and e-cig activists ask, why not e-cigarettes? These advocates believe e-cigarettes can be incorporated into a smoking plan that works and will save thousands of lives (The Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association). E-cigarette companies maintain that their goal is to help

Therapeutic Alternatives: NicoDerm CQ and Nicotine Transdermal System: Both seems to be effective in smoking cessation, however, Nicotine transdermal system is generic and the cost is relatively lower. So it is the better option for the patient because the factors are relevant to the

If you have finally decided to take steps to stop smoking instead of putting it off as a New Year's resolution year after year, then you may realize that your local pharmacist can provide you with stop-smoking pamphlets and nicotine replacement therapy options, such as nicotine

Smoking is the single highest cause of preventable death in America and puts users at significantly greater risk for disease compared to the rest of the population. Tobacco use costs the U.S. more than 289 billion dollars annually in medical expenses and lost productivity (Surgeon General, 2014). The problems associated with smoking are due in part to its addictiveness. Nicotine is the addictive substance found in tobacco and its chemical dependence is as strong as heroin, cocaine, or alcohol (CDC, 2014). Getting all smokers to quit entirely is not realistic due to nicotine’s addictive characteristics.

There are many ways to quit smoking these days, and most of them involve a form of nicotine replacement. Nicotine patches are the most popular form of smoking cessation available on the market today and it has really worked for very many people. But, given the high price of the note, making an expensive gamble when you buy stop smoking patches because the chances are much less than fifty percent that they will work for you.