These are the 3 most effective tips to quit smoking, according to Oxford University

Over the past 20 years, smoking has fallen sharply in Europe, but not in France: 12 million people continue to smoke daily, according to a study published in May 2023 by Santé Publique France. A study including 157,179 smokers, carried out by researchers at Oxford University, looked at the different ways of quitting smoking. The results are clear: three of them are particularly effective.

Quitting with the help of medication

Varenicline and cytisine work by activating nicotinic receptors in the brain - which release dopamine when activated by nicotine - and preventing nicotine from activating them. There is no significant difference between the efficacy of cytisine (brand name Tabex) and varenicline (brand names Chantix and Champix), and e-cigarettes in combating nicotine dependence.

This analysis shows that e-cigarettes, varenicline and cytisine are all effective smoking cessation aids. Twice as many people succeeded in quitting smoking using one of these aids compared with control conditions.

Another drug, bupropion (Wellbutrin brand), proved effective in 9% of people who quit smoking.

However, safety data showed that bupropion could lead to a very slight increase in serious side effects compared with no treatment.

Read more:Smoking: Women who quit during pregnancy can still harm their babies

Replacing nicotine, 'more effective than quitting cold turkey'

The second most effective strategy would be to combine two types of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), such as nicotine patches and gum or lozenges. Nicola Lindson, medical researcher at Oxford University, explains:

In fact, the use of a single form of NRT, such as the patch or gum, reduced the number of people who quit smoking. Around 12 out of 100 people using two forms of NRT together will succeed in quitting smoking, compared with around 9 out of 100 people using only one form of NRT.

In fact, the data show that a gradual reduction in nicotine may be slightly more effective than abrupt cessation. Starting nicotine treatment before or after smoking cessation therefore seems to have no impact on efficacy.

Read more:Doctors couldn't believe their eyes when they operate on a smoker's lungs

Electronic cigarettes or vapes

According to the study, e-cigarettes are also an effective alternative solution to help people cut down and then quit smoking. For the Baromètre Santé 2017, published in 2019 by Santé Publique France, vape is in fact the most frequent remedy used by smokers who want to quit.

As part of Tobacco-Free Month 2019, the Société francophone de tabacologie (SFT) and the Société de pneumologie de langue française (SPLF) have issued a joint press release, stating that e-cigarettes should only be used as a 'transitional means' and should be outlawed for non-smokers.

This study shows that electronic cigarettes, varenicline and cytisine are all effective smoking cessation aids. Twice as many people succeeded in quitting smoking using one of these aids.

Says Caitlin Notley, a social scientist at the British University of East Anglia.

Taking stock of all available experience comparing smoking cessation drugs with psychological aids is a very important way of assessing what works to help people stop smoking.

According to the results of the study, around 14% of smokers who try to quit using these methods will succeed for six months or more. The data show that, without help, only 6 out of 100 people have a chance of successfully quitting smoking.

Read more:Dehydration could be as bad as smoking: Drink this much water a day to avoid health issues

This article has been translated from Gentside FR.

Sources used:

Cochrane Library: Pharmacological and electronic cigarette interventions for smoking cessation in adults: component network meta‐analyses

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