How to Overcome Nicotine Gum Addiction

Nicotine replacements therapies have helped millions of people around the world quit smoking. By offering a small dose of nicotine (the addictive drug in cigarette smoke), products like nicotine patches and nicotine gum can help reduce withdrawal symptoms so people can kick the smoking habit for good. Nicotine gum is supposed to be used for 12-weeks while smokers learn to become non-smokers, but a small-yet-substantial minority of nicotine gum users find that it is difficult to stop using the gum after twelve weeks. Media reports suggest that up to 10 percent of nicotine gum users are still using the product a year or longer after starting it.

It is important to remember that a nicotine gum addiction is much, much safer than actually smoking cigarettes. Cigarettes are harmful because of the carcinogenic chemicals in the smoke and not because of the nicotine. Nicotine is in fact a relatively harmless drug like caffeine. The problem comes with the expense of nicotine gum. At up to $50 per pack, nicotine gum is not cheap, and most people don't want to be hooked on nicotine gum for their whole lives. There are also no studies as to the long-term use of the gum, but any prolonged gum chewing can be damaging to the teeth, gums, and mouth.

So how does someone who finds themselves hooked on nicotine gum go about quitting? Basically, you need to approach it the same way as quitting smoking. The first few days taking nicotine gum instead of smoking cigarettes were probably difficult as your body adjusted to the lower dosage of nicotine the gum offered. In the same way, you need to slowly wean your body off the nicotine. Take notes to find out how many pieces of nicotine gum you are chewing on an average day, then make it your goal to eliminate one piece every few days. Some people addicted to nicotine gum find it helpful to replace some of the pieces of the nicotine gum with a regular sugar-free chewing gum.

By tackling the problem slowly, you should be able to reduce and eventually eliminate your dependence on nicotine gum. If after a month or so of really trying to quit you find that you still feel the need to chew nicotine gum, you may want to talk to your doctor. Some nicotine gum addicts have been successfully treated with the drug Chantix, since it interferes with nicotine receptors in the brain and reduces the pleasure you'll get from chewing the nicotine gum. You've already made a huge step for your health by giving up smoking, and with a little persistence you should be able to break your addiction to nicotine gum and become completely nicotine-free.