Are nicotine patches bad?

Question

I was wondering if nicotine patches are bad for you. Can they give you cancer?? I know everone says the best way to stop is cold turkey but I want to use the patches, has anyone here quit succesfully using patches?

Answer 1

If they were bad, they certainly can't be any worse than smoking!
I used the patches and quit 8 years ago. It worked beautifully. I slapped on the patch and never took another puff again. The patches keep nicotine in your system so you don't climb the walls, but the rest is up to you. Once you decide to quit, don't say you're "trying to quit"--- say you HAVE. Smoke your last cigarette, slap on the patch and call yourself a non-smoker. Don't look back.

Answer 2

Nicotine is dangerous in the sense that it gets you addicted. It is tar and all the other chemicals and poisons that gives you cancer.

Please do not listen too anybody who tells you which way is the best. It is maybe the best way for them but not necessarily for you! You should not be pressurised into the way you have to stop smoking. Just listen to people's stories so you know what's available and what you might expect. Then go with what you are comfortable with.

I tried patches several times before stopping. They are available on NHS so it easy and cheap to have a go.

I was very itchy every time I used a patch but it only lasted a short while. My skin was very red after I removed each patch but it would go back to normal within 2 days and it was not itchy so it was ok. Finally I preferred not to keep patches at night as they were giving me terrible nightmares. I was used not to smoke about 1 to 2 hours before going to bed and after waking up so it was too much nicotine for me during the night. But everybody is different and you have to adjust things according to what suits you best.

Good Luck.

Answer 3

I tried the patches and they didn't work for me.

What nicotine patches do is eliminate ONE aspect of smoking that is life threatening and that's smoke inhalation. Other than that, they are just as bad as smoking. You are still addicted to nicotine only now you are taking it in a different form.

I tried every thing to quit - patches, Wellbutrin, going to lights, cold turkey.

What finally worked for me was waking up in intensive care after 10 days with my throat having been cut ear to ear to take the cancer out of my throat which meant removing my vocal cords. I haven't smoked since.

Course, I don't do a lot of things since then like talking the same way I once did (I used to cry all the time when people would call me sir over the phone), I can't swim anymore, I have to sleep sitting up, I have to wear a tube in my throat all the time to breathe, I can't smell anymore because I don't breathe through my nose anymore, well, you get the idea.

Cancer changes your life forever and there is no going back. Every time you fire up a cigarette you are bringing yourself closer to having cancer. One in two people develop cancer now. Smoking pretty much insures you'll be the one.

Is that what you want...?

After posting this I read some of what people wrote about nicotine. One drop of pure nicotine on your tongue would kill you instantly. Nicotine is used as an insect killer. Nicotine damages your heart amongst other things. Ask your doctor what tobacco heart means... Nicotine is an addictive drug and it is dangerous. Given time it will kill you.

If the patches work to help you quit that's fine but remember they are a drug and aren't intended to be used forever.

Answer 4

Well I hear patches are very good, and many people have quit smoking by using patches...but never ever smoke a cigarette when you have a patch on!! I hear that the plastic/artificial cigarette isn't bad, but it is not effective enough, the artifcial cigarette apparently lasts for a month or two.

Going cold turkey would be the best option, but it all depends on how long you have been smoking. I personally have only ever smoked about 10 cigrettes in my life, as a result of social situations. I felt I had to quit doing that, so I don't do it any more and don't plan to. I know that sounds silly, as I did not have a real problem with it but I just thought to myself that my health was at risk....even from the few cigarettes I smoked. I hope you are able to quit, all the best of luck. Take care.

Answer 5

Come off the Nicotine, buddy! Apart from th smoke aspect which does a higher level of damage in combination with Nicotine, Nicotine per se, is an addiction forming drug and its own harmful effects are as bad as if taken through smoke.The only thing to commend the patch is that if you are irrecoverably lost to Nicotine, then the patch helps in avoiding hurting the passive smokers from inhaling smoke. Nicotine contributes to clot forming in the fine arteries including those of the eyes and can cause stroke and other arteriosclerotic diseases. AWAY WITH IT!

Answer 6

Nicotine patches are definately not bad for you and in fact are much better than cigarettes themselves. They dont contain any of the poisonous chemicals or cancer causing agents that cigarettes contain. Nicotine patches will definately help you to quit smoking by making your cravings less & reducing withdrawal side effects. There are 3 strengths available & you will start on the dose dependant on how many cigs you smoker per day, then gradually reduce down. They are very successful at helping people to quit... Good luck!

Answer 7

I quit using the patches, and had no problems with them at all. I would go for it, you can do it! The risk of carrying on smoking is far worse than any risk from the patches. I cannot find any credible evidence to suggest there is a link between patches and cancer, according to Clive Bates, director of Action on Smoking and Health. "This is speculative research - no-one has detected any cases of lung cancer from nicotine in humans,"

Answer 8

I had really bad nightmares using Nicotenell patches ( cant spell that) so i stopped using them
Then i tried Niquitin c q clear or something like that had no problems with them i gave up a year ago this month
So its worth trying different ones to find one that suits you
Good luck

Answer 9

do anything you can to give up smoking cos the risk is far greater from that ,than any potential allergy you may get from nicotine . I believe that it is the tar and other dangerous chemicals in cigarettes that cause cancer as opposed to nicotine

Answer 10

Patches are fine! Anything is better than a cigarette...the only drawback I had was that they itched and burnt a bit when I first put them on. I couldn't have done it without them. A friend didn't get on with them at all and it didn't help her one bit, but I found it quite the opposite. Best to stick them on bony areas of body I found...think it absorbs better than on fatter areas. Good luck!