Using more nicotine may be better for quitting smoking!

May 5, 2019 / BIOON / - when nicotine is delivered through cigarettes, it is considered to be one of the most addictive substances on earth, so it seems strange to suggest that people should smoke more rather than less to quit smoking However, a recent review of research confirms this For more than 20 years, nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) has been used to help people quit smoking safely People can be ordered by doctors, but in many countries, they can also be purchased from grocery stores and drugstores Photo source: http://cn.bing.com Cochrane Review (specifically evaluating the evidence of medical intervention and summarizing the research results) studied the best way to quit smoking with NRT, and found three possible ways to help: 1 Use two forms of NRT instead of one There are many forms of NRT: skin patches, chewing gum, nasal and oral sprays, inhalers and throat lotion There is high-quality evidence that sticking to patches, along with another form of NRT, such as gum, can increase the chances of quitting smoking 2 Start using NRT before quitting smoking People usually start using NRT on the day they quit smoking But starting NRT when they were smoking a few weeks ago may help more people quit smoking successfully Photo source: http://cn.bing.com 3 High dose NRT may help some people Some NRT release higher levels of nicotine than others In the study reviewed, people who used 4 mg of nicotine gum were more likely to quit smoking than those who used 2 mg of nicotine gum High doses of nicotine may be particularly helpful for people who smoke more, such as those who smoke more than 20 cigarettes a day There is evidence that the use of 21 mg or 25 mg patches may increase the risk of quitting smoking compared to the use of 14 mg or 15 mg patches But why? There are several good reasons why using nicotine in these ways can solve problems, not cause problems: first, they make smoking less pleasant Smokers find smoking enjoyable because nicotine in cigarettes causes the brain to release dopamine, a "pleasure" hormone The brain is used to this, so when a smoker has not smoked for a while, they will begin to experience some unpleasant symptoms, such as smoking addiction, sleep problems and emotional changes NRT provides another source of nicotine for the brain to alleviate these symptoms When NRT is used before quitting smoking, the brain receptors are already full of nicotine when people smoke As a result, smokers do not get the usual pleasure from smoking, which helps break the link between smoking and feeling good Second, NRT replaces harmful nicotine delivery in a safe way Some people may worry about the side effects of taking more nicotine Fortunately, NRT is considered safe, and this review found no evidence of nicotine overdose if NRT was used as directed Smoking is dangerous because there are many harmful chemicals in cigarette smoke, including arsenic and formaldehyde But none of these substances exist in NRT Photo source: http://cn.bing.com finally, NRT is not as addictive as smoking Some people worry about becoming addicted to NRT But getting nicotine from cigarettes makes them more addictive than NRT Cigarettes deliver nicotine to the brain at an extremely fast rate, along with other chemicals that increase the effect of nicotine on the brain Because nicotine travels much more slowly from NRT to the brain, smokers would not feel the same pleasure without these extra chemicals This makes NRT less addictive Quitting smoking is difficult, but it's important - even people who have smoked for many years can improve their health by quitting The problem with nicotine is that it's addictive, but cigarettes - not nicotine - are the killers In 1976, famous professor Mike Russell wrote, "people smoke for nicotine, but they die of tar." This is the same today as before There is evidence that more nicotine may be part of the answer to how to quit smoking successfully Reference materials: [1] Nicola lindson et al, durations and modes of delivery of nicotine replacement therapy for smoking cessation Cochrane Systematic Review – Intervention DOI:10.1002/14651858.CD013308 【4】Jamie Hartmann‐Boyce et al Nicotine replacement therapy versus control for smoking cessation Cochrane Systematic Review – Intervention DOI:10.1002/14651858.CD000146.pub5
【5】 Why is smoking addictive? 【6】 Effects on abstinence of nicotine patch treatment before quitting smoking: parallel, two arm, pragmatic randomised trial
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【7】 What’s in a cigarette? 【8】 Low-tar medium-nicotine cigarettes: a new approach to safer smoking Br Med J 1976; 1 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.1.6023.1430