Scientists may have come up with a pill that fights the two biggest health problems in this country. According to the "Centers For Disease Control And Prevention" more than 400,000 Americans die every year from cigarettes and more than 64-percent of adults in the United States are either overweight or obese. Now, an experimental drug is showing promise helping people fight both problems.
"I had promised my wife for the last 18 years I'd quit smoking, and I was actually smoking behind her back," said Peter VanOoyen.
For years, used car salesman Peter VanOoyen tried to kick the habit. Nothing worked. When he saw an ad asking people to test a new drug to stop smoking, he decided to try it.
"Within nine or 10 days, I was ready to quit," said VanOoyen.
He's says he's now smoke-free thanks to a pill called rimonabant. Researchers say the pill helps smokers quit the habit, with few negative side effects. And it has one positive side effect -- patients lose weight.
"We tested it totally, two completely different studies, both for smoking and to see how that worked, and independently for obesity, and it worked like a charm in both," said Elbert D. Glover, Ph.D., researcher, West Virginia Univ.
Doctor Elbert Glover says the pill blocks the signals to the brain that cause cravings for nicotine. It also eliminates hunger pangs. But, doctor glover points out, it doesn't stop those urges completely.
"They are all looking for the magic pill and in most cases, you know, it just doesn't do it for you, you have to work at it as well."
"This is a cannaboid receptor blocker," said Doctor Arthur Hoffman, a smoking cessation expert at Rush University Medical Center agrees. He says the experimental drug is exciting --but he doubts rimonabant will be a pill that can do it all -- alone.
"The idea that we are going to give 23-percent of our population who smokes and give all of them one pill for the rest of their lives and that is going to stop them from smoking and do no harm that seems very unlikely. To me it would be nice if it was the case but I am excited that this will add to the treatments for smoking," said Dr. Arthur Hoffman.
Doctor Hoffman says medications such as the nicotine patch and zyban are only effective when used along with commitment and behavioral changes. He expects the same to be true for rimonabant. He also says there are still a lot of unknowns about the medication.
"We don't know who long people need to be on this drug and we certainly have no idea if people need to be on it for long term," said Dr. Hoffman.
Peter believes rimonabant has lots of potential. Was able to snuff out his habit and lose 10 pounds.
"I don't want to ever go back and smoke. You can smell it and you kind of remember, but you really don't feel like going back."
The results of two rimonabant studies showed that people on the drug lost an average of twenty pounds a year and that the drug doubled a smoker's chance of quitting. Rimonabant could become available as a prescription drug within two years. But if you're looking to quit smoking now --many effective programs are available.
It takes an average of four to five attempts before smokers quit for good. Researchers say lessons learned in each attempt --are what allow smokers to beat the addiction.
For more information:
Bill Case
Dir. Of Public Information
P.O. Box 9083
Morgantown, WV 26506
[email protected]
Dr. Arthur Hoffman
Rush Univ. Med. Ctr.
Partnership or Prevention An Outreach Program for People who Smoke
www.rush.edu
312-563-2000