There are a few pharmaceutical products used to treat smoking dependence. one relatively new medical trend is the use of anti-depressants to help people quit smoking. Anti-depressants are prescribed by physicians help people stop smoking because they help reduce some of the depression associated with nicotine withdrawal.
GlaxoSmithKline is one of the major producers of anti-depressants. Glaxo sells Zyban and Wellbutrin, both the same drug bupropion, Zyban being approved by the FDA under a different brand name for the indication of smoking cessation. These are part of the class of norepinephrine and dopamine reuptake inhibitor (NDRI). Anti-depressants, as a broad pharmacological class, increase chemical levels in the brain such as dopamine and serotonin, that are thought to increase mood, the same way nicotine works. But anti-depressants are unfortunately associated with many negative side effects like nausea, tremor, a decreased sex drive, and fatigue, all the while showing limited efficacy due to treating just one of the difficulties associated with nicotine withdrawal.
The herb St. Johns Wort is a component in Quit Tea because of its properties as an anti-depressant and in helping reduce some of negative effects of nicotine withdrawal. St. Johns Wort has many pharmacological properties of an anti-depressants. one compound found in St. Johns Wort is hyperforin, which is most likely responsible for the anti-depressant effects. the hyperforin acts as a serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) like many anti-depressants. It is levels of serotonin in the brain are low, due to being absorbed too readily, that medical professionals have determined to cause depression.
The Cochorane Collaboration conducted a major review of St. Johns Wort that included over five thousand patients being treated for depression. A results from the Cochrane Collaboration study states. the available evidence suggests that the hypericum extracts tested in the included trials a) are superior to placebo in patients with major depression; b) are similarly effective as standard antidepressants; and c) have fewer side effects than standard antidepressants.
If you would like to use anti-depressants to help you quit smoking, St. Johns Wort is an option that might work just as well for you as pharmaceutical anti-depressants without the side-effects.