| We've all seen those TV ads for the nicotine | | | | Items like the patch don't just become |
| patch, and you may have heard of other | | | | replacements for cigarettes. Rather, they are |
| options like nicotine gum. But do they really | | | | temporarily support devices that help wean |
| work? And are they safe? | | | | you away from cigarettes gradually, and thus |
| | | | much more effectively than stopping all at |
| Many would-be quitters get nervous about the | | | | once. |
| idea of replacing one addictive | | | | |
| substance-cigarettes-with another. They view | | | | Instead of shocking your body by depriving it |
| nicotine gum and patches skeptically, | | | | entirely of nicotine all of a sudden (which |
| preferring to quit "cold turkey," with no | | | | can result in uncomfortable withdrawal |
| medical help whatsoever. | | | | symptoms), these nicotine replacement |
| | | | products help "step you down." They deliver |
| Unfortunately, many of the people who quit | | | | increasingly smaller doses of nicotine, |
| cold turkey wind up smoking again within a | | | | enabling your body to readjust over time. As |
| few weeks or months. Why? Well, as you know, | | | | a result, you become addiction-free without a |
| nicotine addiction isn't just a mental | | | | lot of the pain, discomfort and stress often |
| problem or a state of mind. It's an actual | | | | associated with the "cold turkey" route. |
| physical disease that affects your body's | | | | |
| chemical makeup. Quitting isn't necessarily | | | | Now this is not to say that you shouldn't |
| just a matter of mind over matter-it's also a | | | | stop all at once. If you want to do it that |
| process of making your body less physically | | | | way, and you think you can do it effectively, |
| dependent on its drug of choice and returning | | | | then by all means go ahead! But if you think |
| yourself to a pure, natural state. | | | | you might need a bit of a chemical support |
| | | | system to help you along the way, then |
| There's no shame in using nicotine | | | | consider speaking to your doctor about the |
| replacement products to help you do this. | | | | following options, all approved by the F.D.A. |