Smoking cessation strategies and approaches

Smoking Cessation

Smoking is a central factor in many pathological conditions. Nearly all smokers have at least some idea of the risks associated with the practice yet chose to smoke anyway. The adverse effects of tobacco use on cardiopulmonary function are well established and recognized; less evident, but equally important, is its impact on all aspects of physical therapist practice, including integumentary, musculoskeletal, and neuromuscular health (Pignataro, Ohtake, & Dino, 2012). Smoking can affect patients all the way from prenatal exposure through all phases of adulthood and thus cessation efforts stand a high likelihood of improving health outcomes.

Furthermore, it is less acknowledged the cigarette smoking affects both the innate and adoptive immune arms. Cigarette smoke was shown to augment the production of numerous pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-?, IL-1, IL-6, IL-8 GM-CSF and to decrease the levels of anti-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-10; tobacco smoke via multiple mechanisms leads to elevated IgE concentrations and to the subsequent development of atopic diseases and asthma and cigarette smoke has also been shown activate in many ways macrophage and dendritic cell activity (Arnson, Shoenfield, & Amital, 2010).

There are now a plethora of different options to help smokers quit. There are both physical and mental aspects involved with smoking cessation. Nicotine is one of the most addictive drugs on the planet as the effects of overcoming this addiction has been compared with that of other highly addictive drugs such as cocaine. A smoker is likely to experience terrible withdrawal symptoms from cessation such as headaches, fatigue, shaking and extreme irritability as they phase out nicotine intake in their daily schedule. The elimination of nicotine can be a terrible experience for the patient and cause major disruption in one's life.

Exercise is routinely recommended as an aid to smoking cessation by specialist clinics and many self-help materials. One study conducted fifteen trials that have compared an exercise program plus a smoking cessation program, or an exercise program alone, to a cessation program alone or a cessation program plus a health education program, among smokers who were motivated to quit. Since these studies used different types of exercise programs, and varied in the duration of follow up, the results were not combined. In one study with a difference in quit rates of borderline significance, the exercise component more than doubled the likelihood of not smoking after 12 months (Ussher, Taylor, & Faulkner, 2012). Furthermore, using exercise to assist in cessation can also have other benefits such as combating weight gain that is generally associated with smoking cessation.

Nicotine replacement aids or supplemental nicotine products can to help calm and somewhat lessen the withdrawal symptoms for nicotine users. There are a wide variety of different products and customers can either buy nicotine replacement aids at their local pharmacy or over the counter (O.T.C.). These nicotine replacement treatments include products that range from patches placed on the body that release nicotine into the body to ease withdrawal. There are also gums that contain nicotine that can chewed when a smokers is having nicotine cravings. Both the gum and the nicotine patches come in different doses so the dosage can be continually lowered until use is discontinued. There are also some oral sprays that allow use to inject nicotine directly in the mouth or even nose to administer nicotine as needed with a nicotine spray.

Unlike nicotine patches, gums and sprays are used on a periodic basis and do supply a constant source of nicotine. The primary value the nicotine replacement systems is that they help by providing support for the physical addiction while the patient deals with the habit of cigarettes while helping withdrawal symptoms for the smoker. This certainly can improve the odds that a cessation session will be successful. Furthermore, many of these products can be used OTC without any visit to the doctor. However, it is necessary for the smoker to read instructions and insert any nicotine replacement product effectively to ensure proper use and safety because nicotine replacement products can be potentially deadly if used incorrectly.