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Even as you are reading this article, new medications are emerging
to help smokers quit. In fact, there is a new prescription pill
that’s designed to do just that. Of course, it’s
still not a magic pill. It doesn’t eliminate urges to
smoke. Those urges still require a serious effort to overcome.
This pill is Zyban, the trade name for a sustained-release
tablet form of bupropion hydrochloride. This same drug, bupropion
hydrochloride, has long been sold as an antidepressant, under
the trade name Wellbutrin SR. Now it’s being marketed
as the first non-nicotine prescription treatment for smoking
addiction.
How does the pill work for smokers? The drug boosts the body’s
levels of two “brain chemicals,” dopamine and
norepinephrine - the same thing that occurs with nicotine.
Actions of these chemicals in the brain give people a sense
of energy and well being. Nicotine produces the same feelings.
According to the advertisements, using bupropion allows smokers
to get the same feeling, while weaning themselves off nicotine.
For many people, this helps to reduce withdrawal symptoms
and lessens the urge to smoke. But like other nicotine replacement
products, the pill should be used in combination with a quit-smoking
behavior modification program.
In one study, the non-nicotine pill helped more smokers to
quit than the nicotine patch. Using both the pill and the
patch was even more effective, but the combination poses the
risk of increasing blood pressure.
Zyban is usually taken twice a day - one pill in the morning
and one in the early evening. It takes about a week for the
pill to reach an effective level in the body. So smokers must
start taking the pill before they quit smoking. Then you set
a Quit Day within one to two weeks after starting treatment.
Most smokers then take the pill for a total of seven to twelve
weeks.
The non-nicotine pill is available only with a doctor’s
prescription. It’s especially important to get a doctor’s
advice, because Zyban is certainly not right for everyone.
The drug is not recommended for:
Women who are pregnant or breast-feeding.
People with a history of eating disorders, such as bulimia
or anorexia nervosa.
Anyone who is currently taking or has recently taken a monoamine
oxidase inhibitor (MAO) medication for depression.
People already taking Wellbutrin, Wellbutrin SR, or other
medicines that contain bupropion hydrochloride.
People who have a seizure disorder, such as epilepsy.
Caution: Seizures disorders are a special concern. Bupropion
is known to cause seizures in approximately 1 out of every
1,000 people taking bupropion hydrochloride. Although this
is a small risk, it may be an important factor for people
deciding whether or not to use this drug. Other common side
effects include dry mouth and difficulty in sleeping.
Pay Attention
to the Dangers of Second-Hand Smoke!
Even people who don’t smoke are often exposed to other
people who smoke. Inhaling someone else’s cigarette
smoke is called passive smoking or involuntary smoking. It
is a proven health hazard to nonsmokers, and it’s not
easy to avoid, because about one in four people smoke. Did
you know that secondhand smoke - the smoke breathed out by
smokers and the smoke from the burning end of a cigarette,
cigar, or pipe - has twice as much nicotine, and five times
the carbon monoxide, as the smoke you inhale?
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