Big Tobacco Fuels Addiction With Nicotine Patches, UCSF Says

Nicotine patches, lozenges, inhalers and gum have long been marketed as ways of helping addicts break the habit. But such products by themselves won't do the job - something tobacco companies themselves have taken advantage of to boost their profits, new research from UCSF says. Nicotine replacement therapy products, which have been sold over the counter at drugstores since 1996, are effective only when paired with counseling, according to a UCSF study released Thursday. Without that, relying on such products can actually make it harder to kick tobacco, the study found.