A new way to quit smoking
31 January, 2001
Smokers who really want to quit may soon have another weapon in their arsenal.
Researchers from the University at Buffalo’s School of Dental Medicine in the USA have completed their pilot study of a mouth rinse that is claimed to make smoking taste terrible.
According to the University’s Professor Sebastian Ciancio, 30 people were studied―10 were used as a control group, 10 used the special mouthwash and 10 used an ordinary mouth spray. The majority of the special mouthwash patients noted a bad taste in their mouth when they smoked―it tasted like ‘sulphur’ or ‘burnt rubber’, according to them. For some, it decreased their desire to smoke.
The inventor asserts that the rinse doesn’t affect the taste of anything but tobacco smoke, which makes it a useful long-term deterrent, should former smokers be tempted to relapse.
The product is described as working the same as any normal mouthwash, except for the fact that for 5-8 hours after using it, the taste of cigarette smoke is distorted to the point where the person should not want to smoke past the first puff.
The inventor says the product doesn’t contain nicotine, or any other drug, which is important for pregnant women and those people who can’t use any of the currently approved quit smoking aids.
The study results have been scheduled to be the subject of a poster presentation in March 2001 at the annual meeting of the American Association for Dental Research in Chicago.
Last Reviewed: 31 January 2001
