Smoking-Cessation Explained

Smoking Cessation

N-Acetyl Cysteine
N-Acetylcysteine (NAC) has been found to be beneficial in the treatment of various types of addiction, including tobacco addiction in one double-blind trial.
Dose:
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N-Acetyl Cysteine
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N-Acetylcysteine (NAC) has been found to be beneficial in the treatment of various types of addiction. In a double-blind trial, 34 people addicted to tobacco received 1,500 mg of NAC or a placebo twice a day for 12 weeks, in addition to behavioral therapy. The proportion of people who quit smoking was significantly higher in the NAC group than in the placebo group (47% vs. 21%).⁸
Lobelia
Research suggest that lobelia herb, which contains a substance with a similar effect on the nervous system as nicotine, could be useful in supporting smoking cessation.
Dose:
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Lobelia
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Lobelia (Lobelia inflata), also known as Indian tobacco, contains a substance (lobeline) that has some effects on the nervous system that are similar to the effects of nicotine,⁹ and preliminary reports suggested that pure lobeline or lobelia herb could be used to support smoking cessation.¹⁰^[REF]However, results in preliminary human trials with lobeline have been mixed and generally negative and no long-term controlled studies of lobeline or lobelia for smoking cessation have been done.¹¹^,12
L-Tryptophan
In one study, tryptophan supplements along with a high-carbohydrate diet lessened withdrawal symptoms and helped people smoke fewer cigarettes.
Dose:
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L-Tryptophan
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Nicotine addiction is thought to be caused by increased stimulation of nerve receptors for various brain chemicals, including serotonin.¹³ Withdrawal symptoms that accompany smoking cessation could be related to the sudden drop in nerve receptor stimulation. However, a double-blind study found that depleting blood levels of tryptophan, the precursor to serotonin, had no effect on withdrawal symptoms after five hours of smoking abstinence.¹⁴ In a controlled study, a daily tryptophan supplement (50 mg per 2.2 pounds of body weight) along with a high-carbohydrate diet (which increases brain uptake of tryptophan) was added to a smoking cessation program. While rates of complete abstinence were not significantly affected, tryptophan plus a high-carbohydrate diet lessened withdrawal symptoms and helped participants smoke fewer cigarettes.¹⁵ More research is needed to clarify whether supplementing with tryptophan or other serotonin precursors might help support smoking cessation.
Oat Straw
Taking oat straw, which is commonly used to treat anxiety, has been shown to significantly reduce the number of cigarettes smoked per day.
Dose:
Refer to label instructions
Oat Straw
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Herbs used to treat anxiety are sometimes recommended as part of a smoking cessation program, including oat straw (Avena sativa), scullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora), valerian (Valeriana officinalis), lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), and vervain (Verbena officinalis). Of these herbs, only oat straw has been investigated in human research for smoking cessation. At least three trials have reported no effect of oat straw on smoking cessation, but one controlled study in India found that taking 1 ml of an alcohol extract of oat straw four times per day significantly reduced the number of cigarettes smoked per day.¹⁶

Holistic Options

In the year 2000, the United States Public Health Service published updated smoking-cessation guidelines for doctors.¹⁷ This report identified counseling and behavioral therapies as proven effective components of a smoking-cessation program. Effective components include providing basic information about successful quitting, identifying factors that will increase the risk of relapse, and teaching problem-solving and coping skills. Also effective is social support provided either in a healthcare setting (for example, being able to talk about the quitting process with a doctor) or by strategies that teach the quitter to build a support network among friends, family, and the community. Guidelines issued in other countries have reached similar conclusions about the effectiveness of counseling and behavioral therapies.¹⁸ Government-sponsored, free counseling resources in North America include Quitline [800-QUIT-NOW] and SmokeFree (www.smokefree.gov). Group or individual counseling is often a component of successful smoking cessation programs offered in schools and the workplace.¹⁹^,20

People tend to smoke more often under conditions of stress. Those who achieve long-term success in quitting smoking have been shown to have more social support and less stress than people who eventually relapse.²¹ Stress-reduction techniques that have been shown in controlled trials to be effective for assisting smoking cessation include self-massage, guided relaxation imagery, and exercise.²²^,23^,24

Some research indicates that the effectiveness of acupuncture on abstinence from smoking is similar to that reported for nicotine chewing gum and behavioral therapy, and that these methods can complement each other.²⁵ One controlled trial showed that daily cigarette consumption decreased more significantly during acupuncture treatment to points associated with smoking cessation than in fake acupuncture treatment (i.e., acupuncture applied to points not associated with smoking cessation). Altogether, 31% of subjects in the treatment group had quit smoking completely at the end of the treatment, compared with none in the control group.²⁶ Electroacupuncture treatment to points on the ear has also been shown to aid in smoking cessation compared with fake ear acupuncture in a controlled trial.²⁷ However, most clinical trials have not achieved comparable results. An analysis of 22 studies found that while acupuncture is often as effective as other smoking cessation techniques, its effectiveness does not last very long. Moreover, in most studies the overall effect of real acupuncture was no better on average than fake acupuncture for smoking cessation.²⁸

A controlled clinical trial showed that people undergoing single hypnosis sessions smoked significantly fewer cigarettes and had a higher frequency of abstinence than a placebo control group.²⁹ However, most clinical trials have not corroborated these results.³⁰ A review of 59 studies of hypnosis and smoking cessation concluded that hypnosis “cannot be considered a specific and efficacious treatment for smoking cessation.”³¹

Smoking Cessation

Health Condition