Today there are over 35 million people trying to stop smoking, with less than 5% of them succeeding – all due to the driving force of nicotine addiction in the cigarettes. One major type of Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) to help stop smoking is a nicotine gum that provides small doses of nicotine to the system, preventing nicotine withdrawal. Stop smoking gum is like any other chewing gum but is made with the nicotine-containing compound, nicotine polacrilex. It is made to release nicotine into the blood stream when placed in the mouth, between the cheek and gums.



Because the gum is part of NCT, it should be taken under medical supervision, not used as a chewing gum. This is important because the strength of the gum is predetermined, and excessive amounts of nicotine should not be taken unnecessarily. Nicotine gum is chewed with a "chew and park" method where you should chew it awhile, breaking the compound down in the gum, then parking it between the cheek and gum in order to release the nicotine into the system. If this method is not done, then the nicotine will be released into the saliva in the mouth. The nicotine will be swallowed, causing pain in the stomach with the nicotine craving still there.

The gum can be purchased as a 2 mg gum or a 4 mg gum, according to the physician's orders. It has a slight peppery taste, an indicator that it is "parking time" for the gum; when the gum begins to loose this peppery taste, begin chewing again. This chewing and parking should be done intermittently every half hour or so. A smoker is able to chew 15 to 25 pieces of gum in a 24-hour period, most effective when no food is in the system about fifteen minutes before using the gum.

The main difference between the gum and the cigarette, is that cigarette smoke will pass into the blood through the lung linings – the nicotine from the gum will take several minutes to pass into the brain through the lining of the inside mouth. This "nicotine hit" was purposely made to be less intensive than with the cigarette, assisting only in the pain of withdrawal, making it less stressful to stop smoking, not to enhance its act. The gum should be taken only when the urge to smoke is the highest, not when you begin to have an urge to smoke. It instantly releases a low quantity of nicotine, and produces the effects of pleasure and well being similar to smoking a cigarette.

People who suffer from hypertension and heart ailments should take the gum only under medical supervision, as stated earlier. The gum is very safe and can be used by people of all age groups. Minor side effects like mouth sores or indigestion are sometimes associated with the gum but it depends on the individual. As a precautionary measure, cigarettes must not be used with the gum since the nicotine levels in the blood will increase, which is harmful to the body.