Nicotine gum
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nicotine gum is a type of chewing gum that delivers nicotine to the body. It is used as an aid in smoking cessation and in quitting smokeless tobacco. The nicotine is delivered to the bloodstream via absorption by the tissues of the mouth.
It is currently available over-the-counter in the US. The pieces are usually available in individual foil packages and come in various flavors including orange, and mint. Each piece typically contains 2 or 4 mg of nicotine, with the appropriate dosage depending on the smoking habits of the user. Popular brands include Nicorette, Commit, NicoDerm, Nicotrol, and Nicotinell in the UK.
Alternative nicotine products include the nicotine patch, nicotine pastilles and the nicotine inhaler.
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[edit] Usage
The gum is first chewed until it is soft and a tingly sensation and/or peppery taste is noticed, after which it is pressed between the cheek and gums. When the tingly sensation stops, the gum is chewed again, and then pinched between the cheek and gums in a different place in the mouth. This is continued until the gum is depleted of nicotine (about 30 minutes).
[edit] Availability
Various regimes exist worldwide as to the accessibility of these medications. Originally (in the early 1990s) they were sold only in the USA by prescription.
In the USA, they are currently available at drugstores over-the-counter subject to the same restrictions on underage purchases as tobacco. Usually the purchaser is directed to the pharmacist but in other cases the display of the nicotine therapy products is adjacent to the cigarette display.
In Hong Kong, the large chain "chemist" (drugstore) shops usually, but not always, require the purchaser of the stronger therapy (4 mg dose) to sign a register with passport number or Hong Kong ID.
In Paris, the widest and least expensive variety of these aids seems to be available and while underage sales are strictly prohibited and this prohibition is enforced, sales to adults are least restricted and the largest range of alternative therapies appears to be available.
The per-dose cost in the USA is about 40 (US) cents. The per-dose cost in Hong Kong is 40 cents. This means that the price of nicotine gum often exceeds that of the cigarettes it is designed to replace.
[edit] Risks
[edit] Cross-addiction
Nicotine is the addictive element in cigarettes. It only follows that a potential for addiction to nicotine gum exists.
There seem to be many "recreational" users of the leading brand Nicorette in the USA who ignore dosage levels and throw away the guidelines and stickers provided with the product and despite Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversight, these users contribute to the profits made by the gum's vendors.
The drug companies' studies indicate that changing to nicotine gum causes people to quit both the gum and smoking, but this will work only for that population of smokers who could (in the era prior to nicotine replacement) gradually smoke fewer cigarettes per day. Whereas heavy and "chain" smokers often report success by going "cold turkey" especially when they (like the late runners Jim Fixx and George Sheehan) find a powerful replacement activity, of which running seems to be the most effective. For many, the use of the nicotine replacement gum becomes a chronic addiction as well. Although safer healthwise than smoking, years of nicotine gum use will nevertheless still cost the addicted user many thousands of dollars.
Nicotine gum may also drive the user to "spit" tobacco because it replaces the activity of "lighting up" with a reinforced oral self-dosage, and when the nicotine gum user runs out of the gum (or cannot afford its prices, which are very high in the USA) he may turn to hazardous forms of "spit" or chewing tobacco. This is less likely to be a problem for residents of the United Kingdom where nicotine gum is also available on prescription from general practitioners, free of charge for users on low incomes and at the subsidised National Health Service prescription charge for other users.
[edit] Side effects
Two unpleasant symptoms noticed by new users and by existing users who make excessive use of the gum in times of stress are hiccups and a perceived constriction of the throat muscles. Gum chewing is also considered uncultured in many countries; this problem can be addressed by using pastille, although the pastille is not always as available.
[edit] External links
Health information:
Nicotine gum addiction:
Online suppliers:
