But we were not able to find any predictors in this analysis. John Hughes, MD, professor of psychiatry at the University of Vermont School of Medicine in Burlington, says that the findings support the United States Public Health Service guidelines that recommend all smokers get medical treatment. But if you are a man, you smoke a lot or if you can't quit in the first few days, then you especially need treatment. We have all these good treatments that are safe and effective, such as bupropion, nicotine patch, gum, nasal spray and inhaler. But people think they can do it on their own.
Smokers have the misconception that quitting smoking with medication is a sign of weakness.
Hong Mautz is a staff writer for CBSHealthWatch by Medscape. She was a reporter for the CNN International affiliate in Hong Kong and was most recently an associate producer at CBS News.