Do you believe the NRT/Zyban/Chantix hype?
If you are a regular reader of my blog you will know I have always wondered why NRT is promoted as a method for helping quit smoking. You can read my views on NRT in this post: Nicotine Replacement Therapy: can it help you quit smoking?
NRT has been shown to ‘double you chances’ of quitting but there is still evidence that NRT is not effective at all in helping people quit smoking in the long term. Smoers stop smoking and start ‘taking NRT’.
Zyban has been found to improve your chances to an average 16% success rate. There are doubts about these studies, as there are with Varnicline because it is alleged that “hardened smokers” are always excluded from the studies. If you don’t let the hardcore smokers try to quit, your studies are not going to be accurate.
You can read more of my articles about these drugs throughout my blog.
I found a BBC Panorama program about how drug companies can arrange the outcomes of drug studies. It is of course in their interests to big up the performance of their drugs. It is 32 minutes long and I know you may not think it is important to quitting smoking but I think it is becasue there is so much conflicting advice out there.
I wholehearted believe that quitting smoking can be easily achieved without using any drugs. I advocate it in my book, the EasyQuit System. It is a lot easier to quit smoking than virtually all smokers believe. Before trying to quit using NRT, Varenicline or Zyban, have a look at this documentary about the way Britain’s largest drug company ‘doctored’ its results for Seroxat.
The film can be found on this link: BBC Panorama Documentary from January 29th 2007. You will need windows media player.
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August 8th, 2007 at 8:58 pm
Call it hype or call it hope, Chantix has been working wonderfully for me, and I’m far from being alone. Today is Day 52 smoke-free for me, and this has been the easiest way I’ve ever quit over 22 years of smoking.
Yes, I had to want to quit smoking since Chantix is not a magic miracle wonder pill that suddenly stops smoking for me, but as long as I want to quit and am more than willing and ready to do my part to cooperate with the Chantix, it has made the experience nothing like the absolute hell and suffering through excruciating suffering that it has been in the past. Now, that severe of a nicotine withdrawal experience is somewhat optional. That makes it easier to tackle the habit side of things. I quit over a year in the past, so I know that I can do this if I keep wanting to, but I didn’t have to suffer so much to get the thing going again.
When I say I’m not alone, I’m serious. Take a look at the links on my blog to other bloggers having success on Chantix. These are just other bloggers I’ve stumbled across along my journey. Sure, some haven’t made it, but the same is true for any method at all, and this is, again, by far, the least painful way to go, and I’ve tried more than a few ways.
Hardened or hardcore smokers? See my post today about my friend J’s Mom. 35 years x 2 packs a day, never made it past day 3 on any other method, now smoke-free thanks to Chantix.
I represent no company and sell no product - I’m just one woman having success and delighting in the success of others doing the Chantix thing.
August 8th, 2007 at 10:09 pm
Maggie, it’s great to hear that you and J’s Mom are making it with Chantix.
December 8th, 2007 at 9:53 pm
Chantix, quit taking it after 2 weeks, as I noted it was making me pick up the pounds. Returned to Welbutrin, which was working well, but I thought it was upsetting my stomach. That isn’t what was doing it. Zyban worked well, wish I’ have stayed on it a few years ago.
December 8th, 2007 at 9:54 pm
Additionally, Chantix is difficult to open and get to the pill. It needn’t be so hard to do.
December 17th, 2007 at 2:09 am
I started using Chantix in May of 2007, and, now, mid-December, I’m still not smoking. This is pretty amazing to me as in the past when I tried quitting I’d have emotional breakdowns.
But, quitting with Chantix has been really difficult. I slipped up several times and resumed the quit after smoking anywhere from a few cigs to several packs. And, even right now I’d really like to smoke.
All things considered, though, it has been a prettty good medication for me.
John