I have read about this drug also. From what I gather, it is basically a chemically induced cold turkey. Which basically means that the person will have no choice, but to go through withdrawal, because the nicotine is not reaching the brain.
To be clear though. Withdrawal is not that bad. It is the fear of not being able to stop those craves by the only way we know how. By smoking a cigarette that makes it bad.
The pharmecudical companies, the Sugeon General, the majority of quit smoking experts, and the media have pounded into our heads that quitting smoking is one of the hardest things we will ever do. We even have our own past failed attempts to prove this. This has built up a wall of fear of quitting and makes the person quitting feel that only a lucky few get to quit.
The truth is anyone can quit, when they learn how and quitting is not scary when you come to understand nicotine addiction.
The physical part of addiction actually plays the smallest part in quitting. It is the brainwashing and association triggers that plays the largest part and is the biggest obstacle for the person quitting.
I don't know of any NRT or miracle drug that can change how a smokers perceives cigarettes.
I do know that education of this addiction will help immensly.
The problem with this miracle cure is this. I think I read to where ithe process lasts a year. You take periodic shots in this time. This keeps nicotine from reaching the reward pathways. What it doesn't do though is change how that person sees cigarettes. They may very well go through this whole process feeling as if they are depriving themselves of smoking. This is the usual downfall to anyone's quit.
A person who has quit for a long time and then smokes a cigarette, does not do it for the need for nicotine. They do it, because they are still under the illusion that a cigarette will do something for them. This is the downfall, because once the person re introduces nicotine back into their system, the cycle of addiction starts over again. This makes a person believe that they are physically addicted forever and makes quitting seem daunting.
I have suffered a lot from this nicotine trap. I have tried to quit smoking countless times. It wasn't until I learned about nicotine addiction that quitting became fairly easy. I never had willpower. I never had a quit last more than 3 weeks. I was never stronger than my addiction. The trick for me was that I got smarter than my addcition.
Happilly, I haven't smoked a cigarette in over 2 years and 7 months and I know that I am done smoking.
Education is key. It will erase the fear people quitting have.
Eric
P.S.
Those stats on quitting are a little inaccurate. Go to the American Cancer Society and the 2003 report shows that 91% of the people who successfully quit , do it cold turkey.
Australia did a similar study in 2006 and 88% in australia quit cold turkey.
The NRT study success rate has a lot of fine print that they don't want any of us to know about and a lot of the stats given are from the pharmecudical industry and not independent research that is in no way affiliated with them.
Remember within 72 hours most nicotine is gone and this is where withdrawal peaks. Within 2 weeks all physical withdrawal is usually over.
The biggest obstacles are association triggers and the brainwashing caused by addiction.
Saving 