title: Is Swedish snus associated with smoking initiation or smoking cessation?
abstract: Nicotine replacement therapies (NRT) are an effective treatment for tobacco dependence, yet most smokers do not quit or remain abstinent. We investigated whether Swedish snus (snuff) use was associated with smoking cessation among males participating in a large population based twin study in Sweden. Snus use was associated with smoking cessation but not initiation. Given that snus delivers comparable nicotine concentrations but carries lesser cancer risk than cigarettes, snus may be a widely used, non-medical form of NRT. Evaluation of the efficacy of snus for smoking cessation should be evaluated in randomised clinical trials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7264, USA.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Furberg
authors.forename: C M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Bulik
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lerman
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lichtenstein
authors.forename: N L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: Pedersen
authors.forename: P F
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Sullivan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004200:Diseases in Twins / Q000534:rehabilitation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009538:Nicotine / Q000008:administration & dosage; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012042:Registries; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D014029:Tobacco Use Disorder / Q000534:rehabilitation; D014030:Tobacco, Smokeless
chemical_list: D009538:Nicotine