Chantix

“If Chantix has been studied and has been found to have likely caused 98 deaths and an additional 188 attempted suicides and it is allowed to remain on the market because smoking cessation is such an important goal, then what is the point of removing e-cigarettes from the market while studying its potential adverse effects?” Dr. Siegel asked in his blog.

“Suppose e-cigarettes were to be found to have caused 100 deaths. Would that warrant taking it off the market, since it — like Chantix — is helping people to quit smoking?” he asked further.

“… unlike Chantix – for which there were many immediate post-marketing reports of potential adverse effects, e-cigarettes have been on the market for more than 3 years and there have yet to be any severe adverse effects reported,” Dr. Siegel said.

“In other words, we know that people are dying from taking Chantix but we’re going to allow it to remain on the market because it’s helping people to quit smoking. We know that there is no evidence that anyone is dying from using electronic cigarettes, but we’re going to take them off the market, even though they are helping people to quit smoking. That just doesn’t make any sense,” Dr. Siegel said.

Dr. Siegel also blames the pharmaceutical industry’s massive power to influence opinion, whether it’s a position taken by a consumer group, an erroneous statement made by a nonprofit organization, or the public opinion in general.

He notes that some anti-smoking groups are calling on the FDA to withdraw e-cigarettes from the market despite a lack of evidence suggesting they are harmful, yet the same groups do not advocate for the removal of Chantix, even though the drug tops the FDA’s list of most dangerous drugs.

“So far, every anti-smoking group which has called for the removal of e-cigarettes from the market has been found to be financially tied to Big Pharma. The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, and Action on Smoking and Health have all received funding of some sort from the pharmaceutical industry,” Dr. Siegel said.

SOURCE: Chantix Recall › FDA favors Chantix over e-cigarettes. Why?