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DrugScreening.org


 
Canada Warns About Stop-Smoking Drug
July 3, 2008

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News Summary

Health Canada has echoed a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warning about suicide and depression linked to a leading stop-smoking drug, the Toronto Globe and Mail reported June 21.

The agency warned that Champix -- known as Chantix in the U.S. -- was linked to 226 reports of neuropsychiatric problems in Canada in the first year after it hit the marketplace. "A number of patients taking Champix have experienced unusual feelings of agitation, depressed mood, hostility, changes in behavior or impulsive or disturbing thoughts such as thoughts of self-harm or harm to others," according to Health Canada.

Pfizer Canada, the drug's manufacturer, stated, "As with any new drug, you need to be monitored for side effects, but it's safe and efficacious."

COMMENTS ON THIS ARTICLE:

Posted by Danny on 08 Jul 08 11:45 AM EDT
With continued effort in the Steps, especially the last three, I have had a daily reprieve for 369 days now from a 40-year, 2+ pack a day smoking addiction. Having tried and failed to quit countless times in the last 20 years, I decided to stop trying to quit and double my effort working the Steps. It has been unbelievable. To paraphrase: “For by this time sanity will have returned. We will seldom be interested in (smoking). If tempted, we recoil from it as from a hot flame. (Oh wait, it is a hot flame.) We react sanely and normally, and we will find that this has happened automatically. We will see that our new attitude toward (smoking) has been given us without any thought or effort on our part. It just comes! That is the miracle of it. We are not fighting it, neither are we avoiding temptation. We feel as though we had been placed in a position of neutrality – safe and protected. We have not even sworn off. Instead, the problem has been removed. It does not exist for us. We are neither cocky nor are we afraid. That is our experience.” (Alcoholics Anonymous, pages 84-85) Well, that was, and is my experience for a year and three days, so far.

Posted by Frontline Hepatitis on 04 Jul 08 01:17 PM EDT
Thank God I had insight about not using this as I had considered it. I decided smoking is an addiction and treated it one day at a time instead.

Posted by James on 03 Jul 08 05:23 PM EDT
It's about time, this drug is dangerous, when used as directed. Hopefully, Canada will ban the use of this drug from pilots, air traffic controllers, crane operators, bus drivers and truck drivers.

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