Nicotine Addiction: Prevention, Health Effects and Treatment Options

Smoking tobacco presents serious social problems with major impacts on public health. It is estimated that 25-30% of the general population in western countries are currently smoking. Tobacco use is the major preventable cause of death in the United States, responsible for more than 400,000 deaths annually. Within the USA and Europe, 70% of all smokers have tried to quit smoking at least once, but only about 6% of these succeeded in maintaining abstinence. This book covers the latest nicotine-related research. The selection of chapters has a certain unity as physiologic, pathologic and psychological themes run through the book and supply the logical connections between the various authors. This work is intended as a contribution to the reversal of the current tobacco epidemic and thereby to preventing many of the deaths attributable to tobacco predicted in this century.