Female smokers wishing to quit have to face different challenges in relation to men, but with proper care can be successful, experts say.
“The problem is that there are specialists or interventions that deal with all cases in the same way,” Dr. T. Ivana Croghan, coordinator of the research program at the clinic of the Center for Nicotine Dependence.
While research suggests that women may be more likely than men to relapse after quitting, Croghan added his own analysis of 3,000 people treated at the heart of the Mayo Clinic found no gender differences the ability of remaining free of the habit, six months later.
The reports of women were most troublesome symptoms of withdrawal such as depression, irritability, anxiety and lethargy, more than men, says Patrick Draper, a clinical social worker and specialist in the treatment of snuff in the clinic.
Additionally, smoking may represent a reaction to negative emotions for women than for men, according to Croghan, while women may also have less faith in their capacity to quit. (more…)
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