Smoking section

The odd but certain charms of Nicorettes

It's a habit some hardcore ex-smokers never want to quit

By Ward Rivers

Quit-smoking methods are like diet fads, they come and go. The latest trend is to combine three different therapies. Those who market such programs suggest combining an antidepressant with either nicotine gum or a patch and, at the same time, to give counselling.

The patch seems to work well for certain more passive personalities, but others like to manage their own detox. For these take-control types, gum is the only way to go. Says Jacques Ledoux who quit four months ago and is still off the weed, "I tried the patch but even with it, sometimes I wanted a smoke. With the gum, when I get the urge, I just pop in a piece, chew down on it and that's it." Mr Ledoux is so fond of the gum that he chews seven or eight pieces a day, sometimes more.

That would seem remarkable to anyone who's ever tried the stuff. One first-time user compared it to chewing on "a grainy ashtray." Others say it tastes like "eating a bad cigar." The flavour is also often compared to chomping on metal; lead is another favourite comparison. Nicorette now comes in three flavours: original, orange and mint. Perhaps the most colourful description of the orange flavour comes from author Augusten Burroughs who told The New York Times recently "it tastes like a mix of Bayer aspirin and mercury."

A HABIT FOR KEEPING
As with many other bad habits, the flavour has not proved a deterrent over the long haul. Mr Burroughs, whose book Dry describes, in dark and acid detail, his efforts to get sober, has been going through 72 pieces a day for the last five years. But then, Mr Burroughs was a two-fisted smoker. When he quit at age 33 he'd been smoking for 20 years and was up to three packs a day. For more on the rigours of his strange childhood, read Running With Scissors.

A 72-piece a day habit could get expensive. A large 105 piece 4 mg pack costs $21.99 in Canada, plus tax. That works out to about 20 cents each so Mr Burroughs has a $15-a-day habit.

The manufacturer recommends that you use no more than 24 pieces a day initially, and that you wean yourself off entirely over 12 weeks.

There are lots of former smokers who don't do that. Apart from the obvious advantages of getting a nicotine hit on an airplane or at the movies, and more recently in bars and restaurants as the smoking ban grows, a cult of sorts has grown up around the gum. Mr Ledoux, who hated the flavour as much as the next guy when he first started, has no plans to give it up -- ever.

His girlfriend, Louise, hopes he'll change his mind. "I love it that he's given up smoking but this stuff really stinks," she complains. "My cousin turned me on to Nicorettes and he's been using it for three years," says Mr Ledoux. "It's better than smoking and it works for me."

He's not alone.