World No Tobacco Day丨Tobacco dependence, "medicine" has action

May 31

World No Tobacco Day

May 31st of every year is World No Tobacco Day, and the next day is June 1st, International Children's Day. The purpose of setting World No Tobacco Day on this day is to hope that the next generation will be free from the harm of tobacco.

Many smokers know that smoking is bad and harmful to health. Chinese law also stipulates that cigarette boxes must be marked with a warning that "smoking is harmful to health", so smokers can see this warning every time they open a cigarette.

However, whenever quitting smoking is mentioned, the first reaction of many smokers is to shake their heads, thinking that they have smoked for most of their lives and they will definitely not be able to quit. Of course, there are also many smokers who say that quitting smoking is easy: "I have quit smoking hundreds of times."

Tobacco dependence is a stumbling block to quitting smoking

Indeed, only a small number of smokers can successfully quit smoking by willpower alone. For most smokers, quitting smoking is not easy. They know the harm of tobacco, but it is difficult for them to make up their minds to quit smoking. Some smokers cannot quit smoking successfully even after suffering from smoking-related diseases.

This is mainly attributed to "tobacco dependence", that is, addiction. The main component of tobacco is nicotine. When you smoke, nicotine will enter the bloodstream with the inhaled smoke, and enter the brain after a few seconds, promoting the secretion of dopamine in the brain, making smokers feel "happy". But after 30 to 60 minutes, nicotine will have an inhibitory effect on the brain, and you need to light a cigarette to drive away the inhibition and seek another nicotine stimulation. Over and over again, gradually develop a smoking habit. For long-term smokers, the nicotine concentration in the body is maintained at a relatively stable level. Once they stop smoking, the nicotine concentration in the body drops rapidly, and they often feel confused and listless, have a serious loss of appetite, cannot fall asleep, and even feel in agony. From a medical point of view, this is called "withdrawal symptoms."

Medication is a good helper for quitting smoking

Tobacco dependence is actually a chronic disease, with the international disease code F17.2, which requires us to actively treat it. At present, scientific and effective smoking cessation treatment methods should integrate psychological intervention, behavioral therapy and smoking cessation drugs, which can effectively improve the success rate of smoking cessation.

Among them, the main purpose of smoking cessation drugs is to replace the effect of nicotine in tobacco with drugs, thereby alleviating withdrawal symptoms. Currently, the smoking cessation drugs approved for use in my country include: nicotine patches, nicotine chewing gum, bupropion hydrochloride sustained-release tablets and varenicline.

1. Nicotine Replacement Therapy

When quitting smoking, the reason why you feel "listless, lose appetite, can't sleep, and even feel like dying" is because of the lack of nicotine stimulation, and the reduction of dopamine released by the brain. The principle of nicotine replacement therapy is to use non-addictive drugs (nicotine patches, nicotine chewing gum) to supplement nicotine for smokers, continue to provide a small amount of nicotine to the brain, and gradually reduce the dosage over the course of treatment, ultimately achieving the purpose of quitting. This type of drug is an over-the-counter drug and can be purchased in hospitals or pharmacies. It is advisable to consult a professional doctor before use and use it under the guidance of a doctor. The course of use of this type of drug should be at least 12 weeks, which can double the success rate of quitting smoking.

2. Non-nicotine smoking cessation drugs

Bupropion hydrochloride sustained-release tablets are the first non-nicotine smoking cessation drug that can effectively help smokers quit smoking. It is also an antidepressant. Although it cannot promote the production of dopamine, it can delay the "recycling" of dopamine and prolong the duration of dopamine's action, thereby alleviating withdrawal symptoms. This drug should be taken 1 week before quitting smoking and used for at least 7 weeks.

Varenicline is a new type of non-nicotine smoking cessation drug that can act as a "substitute" for nicotine and bind to nicotine receptors in the brain, making the brain mistakenly believe that it is still smoking, thereby continuing to release dopamine, making people feel happy, and relieving smokers' craving for tobacco and various withdrawal symptoms after quitting. This drug should be taken one week before quitting smoking and used regularly for 12 weeks, which can increase the success rate of quitting smoking by more than 2 times.

It should be noted that varenicline and bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets are prescription drugs and need to be used under the guidance of a doctor. They must not be taken privately.

It is easy to smoke but difficult to quit. Scientific treatment can help you quit smoking. Don't be afraid of withdrawal symptoms. Drugs can help you quit.