Do Quit Smoking Pills Really Work?

Smoking is a killer habit. Long term smokers are prone to developing many diseases later in life. This makes cessation a very important priority for most smokers. Addiction to tobacco smoking is difficult to stop and various methods have been developed in order to achieve this goal. One popular choice comes in the form of quit smoking pills.

There are many smoking cessation pills available and have varying formulation potencies. One of the oldest brands around, known as Zyban, was developed around the 1970s and originally used for depression. After extensive clinical trials, it was found that Zyban had a remarkable effect with regards to smoking cessation. Although more recent findings have shown that complete cessation with the use of Zyban requires long term use of the drug. As it is essentially a medication, there are documented side effects with its use. Perhaps the most notable are those that resemble nicotine withdrawal symptoms. It is not clear whether these manifestations have something to do with the mechanism of action of Zyban or the actual withdrawal of nicotine from the system.

A more recently developed brand of quit smoking pills come in the form of Chantix. Its manufacturers claim of a significantly high success rate, ranging around 45 to 50 percent. There are some who doubt such findings since groups included within the statistics did not extensively include long term chain smokers. Other findings only rate the success of Chantix at around 20 to 25%. Nonetheless, this shoes that there are still some who find beneficial outcomes with the use of this particular pill, although success may rely heavily on the length of time a smoker has been on the habit. Side effects of Chantix mostly include gastric problems. Some users of the pill find the adverse reactions too cumbersome that further use of the pill is no longer feasible.

Whether it be through pills or other means, the initial step of admitting a smoking problem and seeking solutions to do away with the habit are hard enough for some smokers. The health consequences of the addiction to nicotine are grave, even for those with decent health plan coverage.