WhyQuit

WhyQuit reports that in surveys and scientific studies, more people were found to have successfully quit smoking long term using the cold turkey method than nicotine replacement therapies (NRT). NRT delivers smokeless nicotine to the user through chewing gum, lozenges, patches, and nasal sprays. NRT manufacturers typically tout their products as effective ways to ease nicotine withdrawal symptoms, which, in theory at least, should help smokers to quit. However, the vast majority of NRT users either resume smoking or become as addicted to expensive nicotine gum, patches, and lozenges.

Although no studies have compared cold turkey to Chantix, researchers have studied Chantix against NRT. While one study showed that Chantix appeared to be more effective than NicoDerm CQ in the short term, after a year, the success rate was statistically the same for both Chantix and NRT users. According to WhyQuit, the study forced Pfizer researchers to report that there were “no significant differences” between Chantix and NRT, but Pfizer’s ads do not mention the statistic.

If cold turkey is more effective than Chantix, and NRT is about the same, “why assume Chantix’s long list of serious use risks in exchange for little or no benefit?” WhyQuit asks.

The organization says that without support, “Chantix is probably worthless.” While counseling and support have proven their ability to drastically boost the chances of quitting permanently, Chantix has never been tested as a stand-alone smoking cessation aid. The drug is packaged with a support plan that includes a toll-free number and a web site to which consumers may turn for extra support. Pfizer hasn’t said what percent of Chantix users take advantage of the support program, but if the support seekers were subtracted from the total number of successful Chantix quitters, then the success rate would likely plummet.

Also, if Chantix were as helpful as Pfizer claims, then smoking rate in America ought to be descending. Since Chantix first appeared on the market, however, the adult smoking rate actually increased by one percent.

A third point of contention WhyQuit makes concerns the placebo studies that researchers conducted to gauge the effectiveness of Chantix. “Use of placebo controls in drug addiction studies is license to steal,” WhyQuit says, asserting that test subjects who experience severe withdrawal symptoms certainly know that they’ve been given a placebo rather than a drug that is supposed to mitigate those symptoms. Such studies allow Pfizer to exaggerate the efficacy of Chantix.

Fourthly, WhyQuit calls Pfizer out on its ads displaying people who claim, “I honestly love smoking,” saying that the ads mess with the drug-addicted brains of smokers. Pfizer adds appeal to Chantix by telling consumers that they may continue to smoke through the first week of treatment.

“It isn’t that we loved smoking but that we didn’t like what happened when we didn’t smoke,” WhyQuit claims.

“Drug addiction is about living a lie,” WhyQuit says. A dopamine reward pathway that convinces the addict that “nicotine use defines who they are, gives them their edge, helps them cope and that life without smoked nicotine would be horrible. Pfizer knows this and is now playing upon it.”

Finally, WhyQuit asserts that “what Pfizer will never teach smokers is that cold turkey accounts for far more long-term success stories each year than all other quitting methods combined.” After 3 days of nicotine abstinence, physical withdrawal symptoms dissipate and the brain works to heal its receptors. Counseling and support help cold turkey quitters with the emotional and psychological aspects of quitting smoking.

SOURCE: Chantix Recall › Support group says Chantix ads conceal important information

Heralded by many doctors and other experts as the most promising smoking cessation aid yet developed, for the unique way in which it blocked nicotine from reaching key receptors in the brain, Chantix was set to take over the stop-smoking world. The prevailing attitude seemed to be “it’s high tech, therefore it’s better.”

But is Chantix better? A study comparing the effectiveness of Chantix to NicoDerm CQ reveals that in the short term, yes, Chantix is better. In the long term, however, the same study indicates there is no difference. The study randomly administered either 12 weeks of Chantix or 10 weeks of the NicoDerm patch to 746 participants and followed their progress for a year. Chantix showed a higher rate of success over NicoDerm during the last 4 weeks of treatment. After a year, however, the rates of success were statistically the same.

While browsing the web for the latest news about Chantix, I come across a lot of emails, blog posts, and reader comments written by people who are taking Chantix or are considering taking it. It occurred to me today that this blog could serve as a forum for discussing smoking cessation methods and comparing them to Chantix. As a former user of Chantix, I actually have more than the FDA-recommended 12-week experience with the drug, but that’s another story and I’ll save it for another post!

SOURCE: Chantix Recall › Is Chantix better than nicotine replacement?