History
Smoke-Break was invented by Brett Roth of Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 2004 as a way to break his own two-pack-a-day smoking habit. Another proponent of Smoke-Break is Dr. Carl E. Olson, Director of Cancer Services for a major local hospital in the Milwaukee area. Dr. Olson sponsored the clinical study, and has been treating cancer patients for more than 30 years. Dr. Olson is well aware of the human cost of cigarette smoking.
How Smoke-Break Works
Smoke-Break is a small, flameless, smokeless, clear plastic tube that is capped at both ends. The tube resembles a cigarette in size and shape, but is filled instead with a fruit-flavored gel, which contains a small amount of nicotine.
The principle of nicotine-replacement is the same as it is with the nicotine patch, gum or lozenge. It is the hand-to-mouth delivery method of the product that makes this device unique.
The user ingests the liquid by lifting the device to his or her mouth and sipping it through a self-sealing mouthpiece, much like they would draw on a cigarette. The hand-to-mouth motion replicates what smokers do when they are smoking.
The liquid cigarette is intended to be temporary, with most users weaning themselves off the product within 1-5 months.
Why Smoke-Break Is Needed
- Tobacco-related disease is the #1 cause of preventable death in the world, killing more people than automobile accidents, AIDS, suicide, murder and drug and alcohol abuse combined. This year, more than 430,000 Americans (including 53,000 non-smokers) will die, prematurely, from a tobacco-related disease. That’s 1,200 Americans every day. (“Every 3 days is another 9/11 in terms of Americans dying before their time,” says Roth.)
- Current nicotine-replacement products on the market have very low success rates. Clinical studies have shown a 12-week quit rate of only 22.7% for the nicotine patch. "Real world" studies of the nicotine patch and gum demonstrate a success rate (at 6 months) of only 5%-7%. These success rates are not much better than “cold turkey” (3%). The current products fail for a number of reasons: they don't replace the physical habit of smoking, they don't taste very good, and they are very expensive.
- Cigarette smoking is more than just a bad habit. It’s part of the smoker’s identity. It’s also a ritual. Hundreds of times a day, smokers have been getting their fix of nicotine by bringing their hands to their mouths, and inhaling. Smoke-Break works because it delivers the same nicotine “fix,” with the same hand-to-mouth motion, but without the dangerous carcinogens that smokers get from cigarettes.
- The only effective form of smoke-cessation treatment presently available is Chantix, with a 44% success rate at 12 weeks (www.chantix.com). However, Chantix has significant, and sometimes dangerous, side effects, and should only be used under the attentive care of a qualified physician. Smoke-Break (like all nicotine-replacement products) has no major side effects.
