Nicotine patches and gum should be prescribed to smokers to try and help them quit, the health watchdog has said. Previously, smokers could be prescribed nicotine replacement products if they were to go "cold turkey". But new guidance from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) suggests that smokers should be able to use the products to help them kick the habit gradually.
Patches, gum and other licensed products should be used to replace nicotine normally provided by smoking cigarettes, the draft guidance says.
