Every year, several smokers try to quit smoking and only few of them succeed. One reason behind this is many smokers do not feel like quitting abruptly. A new study from University of Birmingham has shown that for these smokers who would like to quit gradually, Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) is most effective.
Smokers find it hard to quit smoking due to the addicting substance known as nicotine present in the cigarette. Once a smoker quits smoking, he would begin to experience nicotine withdrawal symptoms such as irritability, anxiety, headache etc. NRT helps in overcoming withdrawal symptoms by delivering small doses of nicotine to the body through nicotine patches, gums, lozenges etc. In this way, a smoker can overcome withdrawal symptoms, cut down on smoking gradually and then finally quit.
To find the effectiveness of Nicotine Replacement Therapy, researchers from the University of Birmingham reviewed about seven randomized trials and compared NRT (inhalators or gums) to placebos.
In this study, researchers involved about 3000 smokers and gave them NRT for a period of 6 to 18 months. About 6.7% of smokers were successfully able to abstain from smoking for 6 months, twice the proportion when compared to those who were given placebos. This shows that NRT is very effective for smokers who have long-term plans to quit smoking.
The authors of the study, based on previous data, note that 50% of smokers who abstain from smoking for 6 months are able to quit smoking for the rest of their lives.
This is the first study which focused on the effectiveness of NRT in smokers who would like to quit gradually. Gradually quitting smoking using NRT is also known as Nicotine Assisted Reduction Stop (NARS). Researchers note that NARS will be very much helpful if it is incorporated into tobacco control programs.
