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New research just published in the United States has revealed that women attempting to quit smoking may be more or less successful depending on where they are in their menstrual cycle. The research by American scientists was published in the journal Addiction and said that women’s levels of success correlate directly to the levels of the female sex hormone in their body at their time of quitting.

Women attempting to give up cigarettes before ovulation, they claimed, were more likely to smoke again than women who gave up at other times. It is not a huge revelation that there are links between a woman’s mood and where she is in her menstrual cycle. This research shows, however, that women actually smoke more at some points in the cycle.

A new study just published by the American Academy of Neurology has claimed that heavy drinking and smoking can lead to an early onset of Alzheimer’s disease. Heavy drinking, which for the purposes of the study was defined as more than two drinks a day, brought the onset forward by 4.8 years and heavy smoking, defined as more than twenty cigarettes a day, by 2.3 years. Someone who drank and smoked heavily, therefore, could be accelerating the onset of the disease by as much as 7 years.

On top of this there is a gene which predisposes certain people to Alzheimer’s. The gene which is known as APOE variant 4 brought forward the onset of the disease by three years.

Someone who fulfilled all these criteria that is to say was a heavy drinker, heavy smoker and was in possession of the APOE variant 4 gene could, on average, expect to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s eight and a half years earlier than someone who did not drink, smoke or have the APOE variant 4 gene.

What the survey did not deal with was whether or not lifestyle choices such as smoking, drinking, eating habits or lack of exercise were actual causes of the disease.

There have been other studies which have suggested that drinking a couple of alcoholic beverages a day can actually lower the risk of dementia. A Dutch study revealed that dementia was 42 percent lower in drinkers compared with non-drinkers.

Another study presented at the conference made claims that high cholesterol levels doubled a person’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s

Susanne Sorenson of the Alzheimer’s society said, “The best way to reduce your risk is to eat a balanced diet rich in antioxidants and vitamins and to exercise regularly. Not smoking, drinking only in moderation and getting your blood pressure and cholesterol checked regularly throughout life are also important.”

Two great developments have recently been announced for the smoking cessation drug varenicline which is marketed in the UK under the name Champix. Recent independent tests carried out in the United Kingdom have shown that it achieves significantly better results than nicotine replacement therapy in helping smokers to kick the habit.

The tests were carried out at an NHS clinic on over 400 volunteers over the course of four weeks and compared the effectiveness of various smoking cessation treatments. The results showed that the patients who took Champix in their attempt to stop smoking had a 70 percent greater success rate than those who were given just the nicotine replacement treatment. The study also seems to have allayed fears that Champix can cause problems in people with a history of mental illness. Of the people who participated in the trial, 27 per cent were receiving medication for mental health problems. There was no perceived difference between the mentally ill users of Champix and those patients who were deemed mentally healthy.

Dr John Stapleton, who was involved in the research, said that the benefits of Champix for both groups of patients were exactly the same and that Champix was more effective than nicotine replacement thearapy for smoking cessation. He hoped that these results would provide a more balanced argument for the prescription of Champix, which has, in the past, received some bad press. The full results were published in the January edition of the clinical publication Addiction.

We have heard a bit of news today that has suggested that the NHS is conducting an inquiry into the side effects associated with Champix, the successful smoking cessation drug.  Apparently the NHS has had 839 reports of adverse side effects in the three months to the end of September.  To be honest, we are not surprised by this number as there are quite a few of our patients reporting minor side effects such as nausea or difficulty sleeping.  However, the more worrying figure is the 16 people who have reported suicidal thoughts while on the medication.  It is probably this side effect that the authorities will want to concentrate on and it would definitely be worth investigating whether any of these people had previously had suicidal thoughts or had ever suffered from depression.  As a precaution, we never prescribe Champix to patients with a history of depression.

A rather astonishing figure has just come out of study done in Scotland, where smoking has been banned in public places since March 2006, which suggests that heart attacks in non-smokers has fallen by around 20% based on the same 10 month period in the previous year.  The study encompassed nine Scottish hospitals, which represent two thirds of all heart attack admissions in the country.  In the 10 month period in the year prior to the ban, admissions totalled 3,235 non-smokers and in the equivalent 10 month period following the smoking ban, this had reduced to 2,684.

It is impossible to claim that there is a direct link here but it is entirely possible.  Cigarette smoke contains toxins which can trigger heart attacks in people with coronary heart disease.  It is also possible that the milder weather is responsible as people are less likely to suffer heart attacks in those conditions compared with searing heat. It may take a few more years to establish whether there is a trend here or whether it is a one-off freak statistic.  After all, one swallow does not make a summer!

If you would like to learn more about smoking and its effects or if you are trying to stop smoking then please follow the link to the relevant page on our website.  There is also an information page on Champix, which is the most effective smoking cessation treatment available.  The British Heart Foundation also contains some valuable advice on its website for people willing to kick the habit.

The UK Government is set to add really shocking images to cigarette packets from next year.  Currently the Government insists on stark warnings being printed on the packs informing smokers of the risks of continuing with the habit.  It would appear that nobody pays much attention to the messages so the idea is that a picture can paint a thousand words. Some images being proposed include dead bodies and diseased lungs taken from the bodies of smokers.  The problem is that everyone knows the risks attached to smoking but they still go into the newsagents and buy their usual pack of Marlboros without so much as a second thought.

We have been prescribing the popular smoking cessation medication, Champix,for the last few months and quite a few patients have had success with this medication and have managed to kick the habit.  A few patients have said that the treatment is quite expensive (which it is) but it pales into insignificance when compared with the amount of money that they burn and inhale through the nicotine habit that they have developed.  We will help anyone who wants to give up smoking but we always point out that you must have a real intention to give up and give up for good.

The ITV website is having a debate on this subject today so navigate to the ITV website to join in or leave a comment here.

Figures have been released which show that cigarette sales in England and Wales have fallen by around 7% since the smoking ban came into place at the beginning of July.  However, around 3 billion cigarettes were sold in the UK in the four weeks to 28^th July so there is still a huge number of people still addicted to their habit.  It has been suggested that around 700,000 people will quit smoking this year.

We noticed a surge in enquiries for a smoking cessation consultation throughout July and we have prescribed quite a few courses of Champix – the most successful smoking cessation product on the market.  Champix appears to be working well as we have had a high number of repeats where people started out with the starter pack rather than the full 12 week course.

It remains to be seen whether the figure of 700,000 people giving up will be achieved but people are clearly making an effort with sales of anti-smoking books by Alan Carr and Paul McKenna apparently going through the roof. According to The Times, sales of these books have risen by 260% in the UK since the start of the smoking ban and nicotine replacement patches (which are less effective than Champix) have risen by 235%.

A study in China involving 7,684 men has concluded that smoking can be a major contributory factor to erectile dysfunction.  This is something that we have long suspected but this authoritative piece of research to be published in the American Journal of Epidemiology demonstrated that the statistical link is significant.

There appeared to be a direct correlation between the quantity of cigarettes smoked and the incidence or severity of the erectile problems.  There also appeared to be a stronger association in participants who also had diabetes.  The study included men aged 35-75 who did not have any vascular disease.

Help is at hand here if you want to give up smoking.  We are prepared to prescribe Champix for smoking cessation and there are a number of treatments for erectile dysfunction, including Viagra , that we are also prepared to prescribe.  As always, whether we will prescribe something will depend on your medical circumstances so you must complete a consultation form before we can make a decision.

Apparently thousands of people defied the smoking ban which came into effect at 6.00 am yesterday. A number of pub landlords have been reported to be allowing smoking to continue on their premises with some even saying that they are prepared to go to prison over the issue – at least they will be allowed to smoke there!

According to the Local Government Association, no fixed penalty notices were issued yesterday on the first day of the ban.  Councils are taking a softly, softly approach to enforcement according to a spokesman who said that the lessons from Scotland and Ireland were that the ban could be self-policing.  In the first three months of 2007, 238 fixed penalty notices were issued in Scotland.

Doctors have welcomed the ban, which, it has been claimed, could save up to 11,000 deaths a year through second hand smoke.

While The Online Clinic has seen a surge in enquiries for Champix, the latest smoking cessation drug, in advance of the smoking ban in England coming into force this Sunday, one group is taking its case to the Royal Courts of Justice in London.  Freedom2Choose is planning on filing papers at the court in order to seek a judicial review.  The group argues that the smoking ban affects their rights to the enjoyment of their possessions as outlined in Article 1 of the First Protocol of the European Convention on Human Rights.  Although we are not lawyers, we do not fancy their chances much!

We are pleased to announce that The Online Clinic is now able to prescribe Champix to help people give up smoking.  In order to find out more about Champix and to register for a consultation, please follow this link - Buy Champix

If, after you have read the Champix information page, you still have some unanswered questions, please do not hesitate to contact us by e-mail or by calling 020 7419 5064 - a member of staff will be glad to be of assistance.

A recent study of stroke victims with a history of smoking addiction has revealed that those who suffered damage to part of their brain called the insula were able to give up smoking almost immediately and without any cravings. Stroke victims who suffered damage to another part of the brain were not able to give up smoking with such ease, which has led researchers to the conclusion that the insula holds the key to tackling a person’s addiction to cigarettes. As the insula appears to translate information from other parts of the body into feelings of hunger, pain and cravings, this could have implications for treating conditions other than smoking, such as drug addiction and over-eating.

As well as controlling cravings for things considered to be harmful, the insula also carries out normal, every day activities like reminding us to eat when our body requires food for energy, so a way of targeting particular functions of the insula would have to be developed so as not to cause overall harm to the patient. Having said this, the discovery is still very exciting as the damage to the insula appears to break many smokers’ habit immediately; their brains seem to just forget that they are supposed to crave cigarettes.

A pharmacological development which can target the insula will be years away so for the time being smokers will have to persevere with battling the cravings or take one of the two drugs on the market: Zyban or the more successful Champix.