Chantix Side Effects

 

There are five main chantix side effects that any would-be chantix user should know about. They are:

• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Lucid or crazy dreaming
• Insomnia
• Headaches

Before Chantix was licenced for use back in May 2006, Pfizer conducted extensive trials on over 1,000 patients to determine the effectiveness (known as efficacy in the pharmaceutical trade) of Chantix in helping people to stop smoking. It also used these trials, coupled with placebo trials to determine any side effects that users should expect when using the drug.

It is perfectly normal for a drug to have side effects – in fact, there are no drugs that carry no side effects – even aspirin upsets people's stomachs after all! Chantix is no different and there are many chantix side effects that any would-be user should be aware of.

Looking at the claimed effectiveness of Chantix – being 44% after 12 weeks (according to Pfizer) – it would reasonable to say that the nausea, vomiting, insomnia, mad dreams and headaches are a small price to pay for the benefit of being able to quit smoking once and for all right? Possibly, I say!

30% of users suffer from nausea as a result of using chantix and a substantial percentage have to stop taking the drug because it just wipes them out and stops them being able to continue functioning! Some user report having to take days off work, thus losing money as a result of how dreadful chantix's side effects are.

But if being bedridden isn't bad enough, it transpires that Chantix is not as good at helping people quit smoking as is first claimed. Only 22% of people manage to stay off the smokes as long as a year but Pfizer make a point of not bringing that to your attention do they!

A drug company is no different from a weapons manufacturer or a tobacco company – their objective is to make money and if bending the truth is required to make that happen, then so be it!

In 2008, the FDA (Federal Drug Administration) forced Pfizer to re-write the side effects that patients should expect to experience when using Chantix. This was largely because of a swathe of complaints from patients who found themselves suffering even more that the list previously stated on the box.

More worrying than Pfizer's reluctance to take action is the fact that upwards of 39 suicides have been attributed to using Chantix in the US and over 300 reports of suicidal ideation (thinking) have also been reported.

Linda Collins of Indianapolis has filed a lawsuit against Pfizer after her husband, who had never shown any signs of mental illness or aggression, committed suicide after taking the drug. Her case is based on the fact that by the time David Collins took his own life, Pfizer knew that there was mounting evidence of a link between Chantix and suicide and they did nothing about it.

Of course, such instances are rare but it is a cause for concern as the link appears not only whilst taking the drug but also several months after.

Aside from this most damning link, there are a whole host of other side effects associated with chantix that have been reported now the drug is on the open market.

These include menstrual problems in women, heart arrhythmia, muscular and joint pain as well as backache, constipation, flatulence, anxiety, depression, hot flushes, excessive sweating, concentration problems, hypertension and emotional problems.

Of course, you should not overlook the potential benefits that quitting smoking can bring. Evidence suggests that smokers who stop before they are 40 are (statistically speaking) unlikely to be affected by smoking. Continuing to smoke throughout your adult life shortens it dramatically and for very year you smoke after the age of 40, you slash a couple of months from your overall life expectancy.

Smokers run much higher risk of contracting cancers of all kinds but especially lung, throat, moth and bladder cancers. They also have more heart disease and much higher rates of pulmonary (lung) disease including bronchitis and emphysema.

Chantix side effects may be a concern but quitting smoking is still the greatest single step anyone can do to improve their health bar none!