Abstract
Objectives:
Test the efficacy of international best-selling author Allen Carr’s The Easy Way to Stop Smoking in an outpatient office-based practice.
Methods:
Prospective randomized controlled study involving 58 active smokers who presented to an academic otolaryngology clinic. Study participants were recruited during regular office visits and randomized to receive a free copy of the book or to act as a control group receiving only the name of the book and author. Both cohorts received physician directed cessation counseling. Follow-up phone calls were conducted at 2 weeks and 6 months to assess smoking status, whether the control group participants bought the book, and how many pages of the book were read.
Results:
At 2-weeks, 4 patients in the book intervention group and 4 patients in non-book group stated they were no longer smoking. (17.4% vs. 19.0%). Fifteen of the 31 patients that received the book reported having read some portion of it whereas 3 patients in the control group purchased the book based on recommendation during counseling.
Conclusions:
Smoking cessation rates were not significantly different between the participants who received the book versus those who did not, and were similarly low in both groups. The majority of participants in both groups reported a readiness to quit smoking; however, 97% did not read the book to completion. Although the low rate of readership precludes the ability to assess efficacy, this study indicates smokers’ willingness to read the book is a significant hurdle for its success.
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