Is ulcerative colitis a good justification for smoking?
Anecdotal reports show nicotine/smoking can lessen the symptoms of ulcerative colitis. However the risks of tobacco use appear to far outweigh the benefits. I found an abstract of one study in NEJM 1994 that showed nicotine patch reduces symptoms: http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/abstract/330/12/811 A Cochrane review concludes that the patch may be useful with UC symptoms. There is also some investigational use of a nicotine-containing enema. Smoking, of course, is the dirtiest way to introduce nicotine into the system, with all the other 5000 toxins that cause tobacco-related illnesses. The results of this review provide evidence that transdermal nicotine is superior to placebo for the induction of remission in patients with ulcerative colitis. The review did not identify any significant advantage for transdermal nicotine therapy compared to standard medical therapy. Adverse events associated with transdermal nicotine are significant and limit its use in some patients.
