Are smokeless tobacco products an aid for smoking cessation?
Both cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products are addictive. There is concern among experts that using smokeless tobacco products for smoking cessation would sustain the addiction to nicotine. Smokeless tobacco product users who try to quit often experience the same withdrawal symptoms as cigarette smokers upon nicotine withdrawal. • There are no prospective controlled scientific studies – the gold standard of clinical studies – to support smokeless tobacco products as an aid to quitting smoking. Healthcare providers should continue to discourage the use of all tobacco products and encourage not starting tobacco use in the first place in addition to smoking cessation, using Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved cessation products, such as trans-dermal patches and gum, if nicotine replacement therapy is part of a patient’s cessation program. Tobacco cessation tactics include: • Setting a “quit date” and sticking to it. • Telling everyone you know – family, friends, co-workers – y
