Mental Health
Peter Hajek speaks out in favour of ecigs for sufferers of mental health issues.
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by Dave Cross
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Ailments such as depression, Alzheimer’s, dementia, schizophrenia and ADD have studies supporting the efficacy of nicotine to help patients combat symptoms. Supporters argued that it is because the nicotine stimulates the sensors that release pleasure chemicals within the brain – the effect it has on smokers (and to a lesser extent on vapers) contributing towards its addictive properties.
Professor John Britton, a supporter of vaping as a harm reduction approach, was involved with a report released by the Royal College of Physicians. In Smoking and Mental Health the team concluded that not only are people suffering from mental health problems more likely to smoke but also they are more probable to smoke more than other smokers.
Research has demonstrated that smokers with mental health problems find it the hardest to give up the weed. And, in the case of schizophrenia, upward of 90% of suffers smoke. Britton and his team concluded that encouraging these smokers to adopt a harm reduction program would bring a dual benefit of increasing the health of the individuals while reducing costs to the NHS.
The impact of smoking on health and well-being can’t be stressed enough. In a Guardian article they say: “Although cigarettes may relieve symptoms of mental disorders, they also increase mortality rates – a report from the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors showed that patients in psychiatric hospitals will on average die 25 years earlier than the general population. Many factors contribute to this difference, but diseases caused by smoking may account for part of it.”
Professor Peter Hajek, the director of the Tobacco Dependence Research Unit at Barts said: “Some wards give out nicotine replacements, such as patches, so considering e-cigarettes in the same light would make sense. Giving psychiatric patients access to e-cigarettes, particularly on closed wards, is definitely something to consider.”
Research at the University of Catania demonstrated that vaping cut down smoking rates in schizophrenic patients and yet had no adverse effects on their condition. Doctors observed no elevated symptoms – moreover, the conclusion was that electronic cigarettes were as effective as tobacco cigarettes as a symptom management tool.
With the recent NHS smoking ban extended to electronic cigarettes it is imperative that the authorities revisit the ban as it applies to mental health patients and wards.
Dave Cross
Journalist at POTVDave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous start-ups to develop content for their websites.
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