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Quitting smoking is brutal—but in Cherokee County, Oklahoma, free coaching and nicotine-replacement aids (patches, gum, lozenges) are being pushed to make it doable.
PATCH IT UP: Nicotine delivered in various forms helps quit smoking
Author: Lee Guthrie
Quitting smoking is one of the hardest efforts a person can undertake, and many aids out there claim to help stop the habit – including nicotine patches, gum and lozenges.
Through the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust, the Cherokee County TSET IMPACT Network, coordinated by Lora Buechele, educates and offers information and products to stop smoking. The Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline provides coaching calls and emails, online group sessions, personalized dashboard and free products.
The TSET IMPACT program promotes the reduction of tobacco use, increased access to healthy foods, and promotes physical activity as part of a broader effort to address root causes of obesity and tobacco-related illness in the county.
“With obesity and tobacco use responsible for nearly half of all cancer cases, and with Oklahoma ranking among the highest in the nation for both, this work is more urgent than ever,” states IMPACT’S website.
Prevention not only saves lives but reduces long-term health care costs for communities, states the site.
Macey Matthews, 25, started smoking at age 15 when she found a pack of her grandmother’s cigarettes. She tried the nicotine patch, which is promoted by the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline as a way to get through the rough withdrawal.
“I tried them, but I’m not using them now,” Matthews said. “After a couple of weeks, I quit wearing them.”
She said she didn’t experience any side effects with the patch, and is still smoking cigarettes.
“I was 15 when I found my grandmother’s cigarettes, and I didn’t realize the smoke was so telling; one day I lit one up in my room,” Matthews said. “My mom came in and asked what was that smell, and I told her it was incense. She asked me where it was and I said I didn’t know.”
Matthews smokes about 10 cigarettes a day, and said when she started smoking the price was $5.65 a pack, and now she pays about $10. She buys them at a tobacco shop and looks for coupons to discount the price.
Jack Whitaker has never used the patch but used a vape to try to quit smoking, and with bad consequences. He ended up with vape pneumonia, and finally figured out it was the vape making him ill. Once he quit the vape, his symptoms went away.
“It started with a cough and I got croupy with a gurgle and a bad pain in my chest,” Whitaker said. “When I figured out it was the vape, I quit and the symptoms went away.”
Whitaker said instead of a vape, he prefers to smoke a regular cigar or a BLK – small, flavored or unflavored cigars blending pipe tobacco filler with an organic leaf wrapper. He said he learned vapes use an oil substance to deliver nicotine versus inhaling dry cigarette or cigar smoke.
Although there’s no definitive answer at this point, experts do have a theory about how vaping harms lungs. An article titled, “What Does Vaping Do to Your Lungs?” published on the website of John Hopkins Medicine, quoted lung cancer surgeon Stephen Broderick on the topic.
“Vaping is a delivery system similar to a nebulizer, which people with asthma or other lung conditions may be familiar with,” Broderick said. “A nebulizer turns liquid medicine into a mist that patients breathe in. It’s a highly effective way of delivering medicine to the lungs.”
Vaping coats lungs with potentially harmful chemicals. E-liquid concoctions usually include some mix of flavorings, aromatic additives and nicotine or THC – the chemical in marijuana that causes psychological effects – dissolved in an oily liquid base, states the article.
On the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline, people can get free products to help relieve the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal, including nicotine patches, nicotine gum or lozenges.
Tahlequah Drug Co. sells a three-step program of nicotine patches – Nicotine Transdermal System Patch. Step 1 delivers 21 mg of nicotine over a 24-hour period; step 2 delivers 14 mg; and step 3 delivers 7 mg. Each step has a two-week supply, and includes a behavioral support program with a self-help guide. A prescription is not required.
The National Library of Medicine, MedLine Plus, explains how to use the patch and the benefits of the product. It states the patch is applied directly to the skin once a day and at the same time each day.
“Nicotine patches come in various strengths and may be used for various lengths of time,” states the site. “Follow the directions on your prescription label carefully, and ask your doctor or pharmacist to explain any part you do not understand. Use nicotine skin patches exactly as directed. Do not use more or less of them or use them more often than prescribed by your doctor.”
The patch should be worn for 16 to 24 hours, depending on the specific directions.
“After removing the used patch, apply the next patch to a different skin area to prevent irritation. Never wear two patches at once,” states the site. “A switch to a lower strength patch may be considered after the first two weeks on the medication.”
Gradually lowering the strength of the patch is recommended to reduce nicotine withdrawal symptoms and can be used for six to 20 weeks. Possible side effects include dizziness, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and redness or swelling at the patch site, states the MedLine article.
If a person experiences severe rash or swelling, seizures, abnormal heartbeat or rhythm, or difficulty breathing, medical intervention is extremely important, states the MedLine article.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has given recommendations on the use of nicotine gum.
“Nicotine gum is not used like ordinary chewing gum. You chew it a few times and then ‘park’ it between your cheek and the space below your teeth,” states the site. “The nicotine is absorbed mostly in your mouth.”
Nicotine gum can be used every 1-2 hours by itself to control withdrawal symptoms, or it may be used as needed for stronger cravings when used in combination with a nicotine patch, states the site.
Credits: TCA, LLC.