Nicotine Chewing Gum

Excerpt

To the editor: Dr. Blum (1) noted in his editorial that the Drug Abuse Advisory Committee of the Food and Drug Administration "did not challenge the accepted central role of nicotine in the dependence-producing process." He then suggested, "If smoking were primarily a nicotine addiction, cigarette manufacturers would be foolish to spend enormous amounts of money on advertising . . . to aim at an already 'hooked' population." We agree that "nicotine gum . . . is by no means a panacea" (1). However, the statement made by Dr. Blum may be misleading to physicians concerned about the role of