Chantix Impact on the Liver

What Is CHANTIX™ (varenicline)

CHANTIX is a new medication recently approved to treat smokers who want to quit. This drug was developed and tested by Pfizer to help people who were determined to quit, and comes in a 12-week program of graduated medication therapy and a one-year support plan canned the GETQUIT™ Support Plan. This system of medication and follow-up care has been shown to be one of the best methods to help smokers quit.

The drug works by blocking the nicotine receptors, which affects the dopamine process in the brain and prevents enjoyment of the cigarette. However, the drug itself does not contain nicotine. One of the best ways to get the most from this smoking cessation program is getting the right timing and support care.

More recently, Selena Bartlett (University of California) discovered CHANTIX to be a promising treatment for alcoholics as well as smokers. Research has so far shown that rats who were treated with the drug after being exposed to alcohol and developing an addition experienced a 50 percent reduction in cravings for alcohol.* It is possible that the reason is because CHANTIX affects the dopamine process and disruption of this will help alcoholics as well as smokers.

In fact, smoking and drinking often occur together, and even though researchers are not exactly sure why, CHANTIX affects on both could offer some insight into the reasons behind this phenomenon. Because the drug may work safely on both problems for humans, it could be a real boost to those who have addiction problems with both alcohol and cigarettes.

One of the major advantages to using CHANTIX for alcoholics is that it is safe for the liver. The liver is affected negatively by alcohol consumption, and many alcoholics are in various stages of liver disease. CHANTIX is not metabolized in the liver, and therefore may offer a much safer alternative for alcohol treatment than drugs that would be processed in that organ.

Because there is no rebound effect when patients go off the CHANTIX after the 12-week prescribed course, there is not as much return to smoking as with other therapies. If CHANTIX has the same affect on alcoholics, their livers will be spared further damage through a higher success rate and less recidivism.

Even with the promise of the new treatment, it’s always important to remember that there will be some withdrawal symptoms that CHANTIX can’t treat. Alcohol and cigarettes both have their own set of withdrawal symptoms, and patients should be aware of the difference between those and the known side effects of the drug. CHANTIX does not treat the withdrawal of smoking cessation so it probably won’t treat the withdrawal of alcoholism, either. Also, CHANTIX is not currently available for human use, so if you are in need of alcohol treatment, don’t wait for the drug to be approved by the FDA--get help now and get a head start.

*SOURCE: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences