NRT no better than will power for stopping smoking?

Dr Galen

Nicotine patches may not help smokers to stub out the habit, according to a new study.

Researchers found nicotine replacement therapies (NRTs) designed to help people stop smoking - specifically patches and gum - do not appear to be effective in helping smokers quit long-term, even when combined with counselling sessions.

The study was conducted by researchers at Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and the University of Massachusetts in the United States who are now calling for greater regulation of which nicotine products can be sold over the counter.

Lead author Hillel Alpert, a research scientist at HSPH, said: "This study shows that using NRT is no more effective in helping people stop smoking cigarettes in the long-term than trying to quit on one's own."

The researchers followed 787 adult smokers in Massachusetts who had recently quit smoking. They were surveyed over three time periods: 2001-2002, 2003-2004, and 2005-2006 and were asked whether they had used a nicotine replacement therapy in the form of the nicotine patch placed on the skin, nicotine gum, nicotine inhaler, or nasal spray to help them quit, and if so, what was the longest period of time they had used the product continuously.

They were also asked if they had joined a quit-smoking programme or received help from a doctor, counsellor, or other professional.

The results showed that, for each time period, almost a third of recent quitters reported to have relapsed. The researchers found no difference in relapse rate among those who used NRT for more than six weeks, with or without professional counselling. No difference in quitting success with use of NRT was found for either heavy or light smokers.

Mr Alpert said that even though clinical trials have found NRT to be effective, the new findings demonstrate the importance of empirical studies regarding effectiveness when used in the general population.

He added that using public funds to provide NRT to the population at large is of questionable value, particularly when it reduces the amount of money available for smoking interventions shown in previous studies to be effective, such as media campaigns, promotion of no smoking policies, and tobacco price increases.

Smoking cessation medications have been available over the counter for more than a decade.

Co-author Gregory Connolly, director of the Centre for Global Tobacco Control at HSPH, said: "What this study shows is the need to approve only medications that have been proven to be effective in helping smokers quit in the long-term and to lower nicotine in order to reduce the addictiveness of cigarettes."

The study was published online by the journal Tobacco Control.

From Irish Independant site

As a smoker myself, with all the good intentions of giving up I thought this was an interesting piece.

I know lots of people swear by these things, but personally I've never found them much good. In fact, I took a nasty reaction to patches once.

NRT is a huge industry, worth billions worldwide. NRT is available on the NHS afaik, so the question is, would money be better spent on funding of cheaper but just as effective initiatives?

JuliusCaesar

More effective, but lacking in revenue, is the psychological approach to stopping smoking. It's all about choice, and not about compulsion. If you WANT to stop, then you find a way that works to help maintain motivation and deal with cravings*.







* some people call this 'will-power', others don't.

Delancey

Very interesting study though my personal experience is that NRT is very effective , however this is a scientific forum and anecdotal evidence is not scientific evidence.
I suppose it's healthy to see long-held views and beliefs challenged - however unpopular that may prove.

Dr Galen

What did you find so effective about NRT?

Personally never been much of a fan. The little inhaler thing I found useful on a long flight once :P

Qualitative stuff would be quite important when studying something like this in fairness, although, it would have to be balanced by actual numbers and stats as well

Delancey

I found the 4mg gum very good at dealing with cravings - 6 or 7 pieces a day was spot on for me.
Patches were a waste of time for me but I know people who swear by them.

Encrypted Pigeon

I think I spent as much money on NRT (gum, patches, inhaler) as I did on cigarettes (figure of speech of course ) when trying to quit but in the end I literally ripped the patch off and went cold turkey as I was fed up with it (going 3 1/2 years now). I always felt NRT was just delaying the inevitable and believe my success came about by "actually" wanting quit.
This is just my personal opinion, its what every works for you of course but the will to want to quit has to be there if you really what to break away.

nesf

NRT has been shown in the past to have a depressingly low quit rate. But it's a big money spinner (precisely because of this really) so it'll be continually pimped on TV and in pharmacies. E-cigarettes show some initial promise but there are no (to my knowledge) large scale studies done yet, so impossible to recommend them on anything other than a personal experience basis.

Still, the placebo effect is strong and the more expensive the quit method...