Does it work? (Nicorrette Gum)

Member Name: tigertom22

Product:	Nicorrette Gum
Date:	14/02/02 (3931 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: There's no tar involved

Disadvantages: You may become a nicotine junky, You must remember to stock up, Can make you sick

Before we get to weather it works or not, it’s important to know why I wrote this!
I wrote opinion on this stuff, coz I've tried the gum and I now know the truth about the gum.
Also I am a 20 a day smoker and I want to quit.

So…

I brought (well my lovely girlf brought me) 30 pieces of 4mg Mint gum, £7.49 it cost.

We went for the 4mg gum as it is the strongest available, there is also 2mg available. We chose the 30-piece packet, as 15 seemed to few, and 105 far to many.
Mint was her choice.

Inside your packet of gum you will find a very helpful pamphlet on which packet suits you best. (Not very helpful once you’ve brought it though!)
The advice is very helpful though. It tells you to work out how much you smoke and what gum will suit your tastes best.

It also gives loads of maxims and handy tips on how to quit. Some are good, but most you will have heard before. In truth it’s you that will make you quit, not a maxim. (Unless you’re a maxim lover)

Purchasing advice:
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If you smoke less than 20 a day get the 2mg (Low Strength) gum, more than 20, 4mg gum (Full Strength).

Get sugar free if you have less than perfect teeth, as you will have something sugary next to your teeth for over half an hour at a time. (So get sugar-free)

Buy a small packet first, 15 pieces or 30. Don’t go crazy and waste your money on 105-piece packet and then find you can’t stand the stuff.


The main problem about the gum:
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Now here’s the stinker.

You have to chew this gum in a special way! (Yeah I know)
Unfortunately you cannot just whip a piece into your mouth every time you want a smoke and then chew away. Oh no.

You have to chew how they say or you will become sick. (Actually ill)

How to chew gum:
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1. Chew slow
ly until taste is strong.
2. Rest between gum and cheek.
3. Chew again when taste has faded.

That’s is what it says on the back of all the manuals and packets, three easy steps to relief.

WRONG, here are the real steps.

How you will chew the gum:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. When homicide level increases to an uncontrollable level hunt for gum packet.
2. Take care to not allow anyone to see you do it, so as avoid all the “Are you giving up?“ questions.
(OF COURSE I’M GIVING UP, DO THINK I CHEW THIS STUFF FOR FUN!)
3. Rip open packet and throw gum into mouth and sit shaking wondering when nicotine will kick in.
4. Try to chew softly as instructed and await any flavour in your mouth.
5. Nearly gagging on the horrible taste now filling your mouth of nicotine, halt chewing.
6. Jam gum into back part of your mouth somewhere uncomfortable between your gum and teeth.
7. Realize you probably look like a gopher with a huge piece of half chewed gum in your mouth and surreptitiously smooth it over through your cheek with your hand.
8. Try not to swallow any of the saliva built up in your mouth as your throat already burns from the last piece you had.
9. Try to stabilize your moods with new nicotine input.
10. Feel very light headed from way too much nicotine at once.
11. Chew again 2mins later loving the new, huge, nicotine hits you are getting.
12. Still crave cigarette, as gum is nothing like a fag.


You will become sick?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yes unfortunately you will become very sick if you chew like normal gum. The theory of the gum is that as you chew nicotine will be released into your mouth and absorbed through your gums. Which is great. Except nicotine is really poisonous and will irritate your mouth, your throat and if enough gets into your tummy, you will feel very sick indeed. The problem is that 4mg of nicotine is
loads, roughly 8 of my normal fags. So when you chew most of the nicotine will go down your throat and not be absorbed where it should be. So you don’t get to chew much, which is unfortunately one of the few things that would relieve your cravings. (Try a lollypop apparently they work)


Second problem:
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As I said above 4mg is roughly 8 cigarettes of nicotine. If you only have 4 pieces a day and you normally smoke 20 a day. You will actually be taking in more nicotine than you would smoking. Which when / if you fail quitting is a right pain in butt. If you go back to smoking after the gum your cravings will be huge and worse than ever.

The idea is you’re meant to keep too, is that you gradually reduce the amount of nicotine you require by using less and less of the gum. Lowering the strength and just using less.
Which is a good plan.

Unfortunately it’s also an arse plan.
If you don’t have enough self-control to stop smoking in the first place, where on earth are going to get the self-control not to get hocked on nicotine now that you don’t smoke.

I’m sorry this is too dangerous a way to quit. I myself got up 10 pieces a day, that’s 40mg on nicotine, that’s 80 fags!!! I was getting through two packets a day once I had failed with the gum.
It made me a nicotine junky in under two days, and I thought I was doing well!!!

Third Problem:
~~~~~~~~

The gum is actually more expensive than smoking on a 1-to-1 basis.
Say you have one piece of gum for every cigarette you would normally have.

1 cigarette cost : 22p
1 piece of gum : 25p

Okay, that might not seem like much, but in three days you could either smoke 3 packets of fags or use 2 packets of gum.

Again that might seem like hardly anything. But you are not going to quit within a few days; it will probably take you at least 4 wee
ks to quit. That’s a lot of expensive gum. (And a lot of remembering to buy it, and remembering that pubs, clubs, most shops you normally buy fags from won’t sell you Nicorette gum: A lot of planning ahead!).


But before I close there is, some, redeeming features of the gum and I feel obliged to list them.

Good point of the gum:
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1. If used properly by someone with a steely will power the gum will help and make it easier on you (and others) to quit smoking. Replacing the nicotine source will stop you smoking and hopefully allow you remove from your life the social and physiological habits you have from smoking.


That’s the good points done :)

Summary:
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I doubt the gum will help and it didn’t help me. It didn’t remove the cravings for a smoke, instead it moved them to the gum and made me a nicotine junky. I also had a soar tummy and throat due to the gum for a week or two.
Maybe I just wasn’t the right kind of person for the gum to work on.

But I do know this: When I ran out of gum in the pub and the new HUGE cravings kicked in. It would’ve taken the entire cast of Baywatch and the Knightrider babes standing next to me, naked, getting down to some serious lesbian action, chanting “Come here big boy,” and dragging me back to join in, to stop me getting to that cigarette machine and sparking up!

Nicorette gum?
Nice idea, just didn’t work for me.

Summary: