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Still Images/ Getty Images A cheap quit-smoking drug offered in Eastern Europe can assist cigarette smokers kick the practice, however it's not as reliable as more costly medications readily available in the U.S, a new study finds. Scientists from University College of London led a study of 740 Polish smokers who were arbitrarily designated to attempt the smoking-cessation drug cytisine (Tabex) or placebo for nearly a month.
4% of the cytisine group remained smoke-free, while only 2. 4% of the control group were still abstinent. More than triple the benefit? That might seem remarkable, however Tabex's success rate pales in comparison to that of varenicline (Chantix), a popular stop-smoking drug sold in the U.S., which studies show assists about 20% of cigarette smokers remain abstinent, compared to about 10% of placebo takers, after 12 months.
About 4. 6% of cytisine users reported psychiatric problems, compared with 3. 2% of the placebo group, a little increased risk of these unfavorable impacts. (Typical side effects included queasiness and stomachache.) Cytisine, which is made from Golden Rain acacia seeds, also costs much less than varenicline. It has actually been offered in Eastern Europe since the 1960s, according to the authors.
Cytisine works by simulating nicotine and binding to acetylcholine receptors in the brain, which can fool the body into believing it's being exposed to nicotine. While even the authors caution that it may not be the most powerful anti-smoking representative readily available, they note it may be of assistance to a specific portion of smokers, specifically in the developing world.
And anything that curbs the desire for cigarettes is a good idea for public health. Alice Park is an author at TIME. Find benefits of quitting smoking on Twitter at @aliceparkny. You can likewise continue the discussion on TIME's Facebook page and on Twitter at @TIME.
The total goals of this study are to 1) assess awareness of interest in the usage of pharmacotherapy for cigarette smoking cessation in Croatia and Slovenia, nations in Central Europe with really high smoking cigarettes frequency, and 2) examine whether cytisine is at least as feasible and efficient as varenicline in assisting smokers to stop in a real-life setting: family medicine practices in Croatia and Slovenia.