A study by the University of Wisconsin Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention found the most effective way for smokers to quit smoking is to combine an over-the-counter nicotine replacement patch and a nicotinereplacement lozenge in daily treatment.
The study is the largest to date for comparing tobacco dependence treatments against each other, according to a UW-CTRI statement.
“We started collecting data in January 2005,” said Megan Piper, lead researcher at UW-CTRI. “Folks who signed on agreed to three years of participation. Many finished the third year and many are on their second year. We recruited in both Madison and Milwaukee from television and newspaper ads.”
More than 1,500 Wisconsin smokers 18 and older participated. Every smoker involved in the study was also given at least six sessions of counseling, according to Piper.
The study compared nicotine patches, nicotine lozenges and a combination of the two; bupropion — a prescription medication — and its combination with the lozenge; and a placebo. Of the methods, a combination of the patch and lozenge were deemed most effective. The placebo, or quitting cold turkey, was the least effective.
“These results were targeted for daily smokers — at least 10 cigarettes a day,” Piper said. “Someone smoking maybe not every day, but less, [might find] that a combination (of a patch and lozenge) may not be as good for them because they would experience a nicotine overdose if they were not used to [that amount].”
While the national rate of adult smokers is 19.8 percent, in Wisconsin 19.6 percent of adults are smokers, according to UW-CTRI spokesperson Moira Harrington.
“I think smoking is a problem on most college campuses. Most people start before they get to college, but some smokers start a daily smoking pattern while they’re in college,” Piper said. “People start while they’re trying to study for finals, or have one in a bar, then go on to develop a true dependence.”
While the patch and lozenge were the most effective combination, other methods were left out of the test, including nicotine-replacement nasal spray, inhaler or gum.
“I think the big message is that if you’re a daily smoker and you’re smoking at least half a pack a day, [this treatment] plus the idea of getting coaching or counseling will help greatly” Piper said.
She added frequent smokers could also call the national quit line number 1-800-QuitNow. Staff is available to help smokers decrease their dependency through numerous methods, including counseling.
As a nationally prominent research center and a part of the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, the UW-CTRI functions as a research community committed to determining the nature of tobacco dependence and developing evidence-based treatments to assist smokers.
It was founded in 1992 to combat smoking as the No. 1 cause of preventable death, Harrington said.
