People think that to quit smoking, all they need to do is to replace the nicotine supplied by the cigarette. There are a variety of products available to buy, many non-prescription, that give an ample way to obtain replacement nicotine. However, they aren’t very effective. The reason why people continue to smoke is due to the Psychological Smoking Mechanism, not just a need for nicotine.
In this article, we will look at some research on the effectiveness of nicotine patches and gum.
The Nicotine Model of Smoking
Back in the 1990’s, nicotine got called a highly addictive substance. It had been blamed for the reason people think it is hard to give up smoking. Yet, cigarette smoking does not fit this is of a chemical addiction.
In the nicotine model, craving nicotine is what keeps a person smoking. It followed that when nicotine could be provided from the source other than cigarettes, the smoker wouldn’t normally crave cigarettes. Thus, the individual would stop smoking cigarettes by replacing the foundation of nicotine with a nicotine patch or nicotine gum. Then, the brand new source of nicotine could possibly be gradually reduced as time passes before smoker’s “addiction” to nicotine was removed.
This would be considered a nice, simple solution if nicotine was the real driving force to smoke cigarettes. However, if you have some other reason people smoke, including the Psychological Smoking Mechanism, supplying nicotine will not be a highly effective substitute. Let’s look at some research on the effectiveness of nicotine patches and gum.
The Research
Two products that follow the chemical addiction model of using tobacco are nicotine patches and nicotine gum. They’re superb products and do just what they say; they provide a very ample supply of nicotine. Since the smoker gets generous levels of nicotine, which they are supposedly craving, the patches should be incredibly effective and take away the desire for a cigarette. But how effective are they?
Some research shows, (Davidson, M., Epstein, M., Burt, R., Schaefer, C., Whitworth, G. & McDonald, A. (1998)), only 19% of people on nicotine patches had stopped smoking at six weeks also it was reduced to 9.2% at six months. Looking at it another way, at 6 weeks, 81% of the people using nicotine patches were still smoking and at six months, about 91% were still smoking. Yes, 10% of those that had stopped were back at it again.
The outcomes for the gum was a comparable. Despite the fact that the gum was providing the smoker with a lot of nicotine, at 6 weeks, 84% of individuals were still smoking and at six months, 92% were smoking.
The research showed that the 8% – 9% of the people who had quit smoking utilizing the nicotine patches and gum were highly motivated to give up smoking! Put simply, these were removing their Psychological Smoking Mechanism.
A GENUINE Life Example
A radio host was interviewing me about the Psychological Smoking Mechanism and throughout the interview he explained that he was an ex-smoker. He said he had used nicotine gum to quit also it had taken him two years until he was finally from cigarettes. TWO YEARS!
Think about that for an instant. The nicotine gum was providing a large supply of nicotine just as it is designed to do. Yet, this man was smoking AND chewing the nicotine gum. Basically, the gum, packed with nicotine was not substituting for the cigarette as it theoretical must have done.
Since the man wanted to quit, he finally stopped after two years. parhaat nikotiinipussit Nonetheless it wasn’t the gum, it had been him changing his Psychological Smoking Mechanism without even realizing consciously what he was doing. Similar to the 8% – 9% of individuals in the study study mentioned above.
Nicotine is Not the Motivator to Smoke
The quantity of nicotine a smoker gets in one cigarette is quite small. Compare the cigarette to your system mass; it’s tiny and so is the quantity of nicotine it contains.
However, these very effective nicotine dispensing products, nicotine patches and gum are loaded with nicotine. That’s what they’re made to do; put adequate nicotine in to the smokers system to, theoretically at the very least, replace the necessity to smoke a cigarette. However, most smokers have effects to these products because they are getting more nicotine than they ever did smoking. What does all of this extra nicotine do?
Based on the American Lung Association, side effects with the nicotine patch are:
Headache
Dizziness
Upset stomach
Weakness
Blurred vision
Vivid dreams
Mild itching and burning on your skin
Diarrhea
Yes, nicotine has an effect on the smokers body. However, with all the current things that smoking does to the smoker, it generally does not produce the effects mentioned by the American Lung Association. That is another clue that nicotine isn’t the motivator to smoke.
Conclusion
If you go by the nicotine model to quit smoking, you will definitely be disappointed. The only method to quit smoking is to take away the Psychological Smoking Mechanism through the use of proven, psychological techniques. When the mechanism is fully gone, so is smoking.
� Copyright 2010, R. Michael Stone
R. Michael Stone, M.S. – Counselor
33 years experience with subconscious communication and subconscious programming techniques.
Creator of The Unlearn Smoking Success System? – This program that provides you the powerful psychological tools essential to disassemble the Psychological Smoking Mechanism. This easy 28 day program can help you become, no ex-smoker, but a Non-smoker. Learn how this program may help you permanently remove cigarettes from your life.