Tabacco smoking and personalized approach in prevention and treatment

Overview

The article contains a brief history of tobacco smoking. It mentions Jean Nicot, who recommended tobacco leaves for ­medical compresses. Tobacco smoking is today classified as a chronic lethal illness (F17). Nicotine is a simple ­alkaloid with characteristics of a sympatomimetic, which acts as a psychomotor stimulant, and to which most people rapidly develop a tolerance. Nicotine is a drug and is similar to amphetamines or cocaine. ­Regular smokers start to smoke, in 90% of cases, between the ages of 14 and 16, meaning that the prevention of smoking must be focussed primarily on this age group. People who start smoking at this age are mainly those with psychosocial problems and who come from families with a lower level of education; for this reason, the prevention of stress and assistance with psychosocial problems in children and young people from these families is the main task for society as a whole. Adults should set a proper example to children and young people; however this is a question of knowledge and education in illness prevention, a question of morale and responsibility for one’s health and a question of the protection of public health. Recommendations have been drawn up for the treatment of tobacco dependency, which include: brief inter­ventions by healthcare workers in the course of routine work, more intensive specialist support in specialised centres and pharmaceutical assistance. However, this approach must be continually improved, primarily through an individualized approach to every smoker to opt for it. This would be chosen based on ­findings on the psychosocial, health, and genetic basis of their dependency.

Keywords:
giving up smoking – tobacco dependency – individualized approach – smoking prevention