Resolve Smoking Cessation At What Cost? By Lexxia on Jun 13, 2008 - Updated Oct 15, 2011

Resolve has worked for me..and worked quickly. Real pity I can't and won't recommend it...yet.

Resolve is a gradual smoking cessation lozenge. A pamphlet within the package offers tips on how to use it in combination with a graduated tapering off process. It's said to be 70% more successful in allowing you to kick the habit, than by doing so 'cold turkey'. Through a combination of tracking your smoking habits/triggers, smoking an allotted number of cigarettes each day, reducing that number by 3 each day and sucking on a Resolve lozenge every hour or so (total of 10 per day) the possibility of being smoke free within 3-7 weeks is there. I'm pretty certain that I'd be a 3 week'er or less given the results I had with this product. We went through a similar program without the aid of any cessation products back in the late 80's. We quit within 2 weeks and remained smoke free for 9 whole years! What happened? Bad crowd :) too much partying and too many temptations! I know, how stupid were we.

I used Resolve for the first time late last year. I chose it because it claimed to be a 'natural, nicotine free way' to quit. I have tried some of the other products out there but have ended up with a racing heartbeat, severe stomach pains or because of certain ingredients in them can't ingest due to medications I already take that would interact poorly. I wasn't very diligent the first time and after the 2nd day I forgot to take a few lozenges and allowed a craving to interrupt instead. Obviously I wasn't as serious about quitting as I thought I was. But that was then and this is now. The lozenge has a bit of a gritty texture and has a cool peppermint taste. You fully dissolve one (no chewing, crushing or breaking down of the lozenge allowed) letting it melt away gradually over a 7-10 minute period. Surprisingly, I found that after the 2nd lozenge my first try, the desire to have a cigarette was practically gone and I went without any cravings at all. I actually had to push myself to follow the tapered allottment I'd set. The ingredients in Resolve work to block the receptors that crave the nicotine and the longer lozenges are introduced to the body, the less the desire to smoke. This first failed attempt was successful in a sense as a pack of 25 cigarettes lasted almost 4 days and that included my husband smoking some as well. I'm normally a 10-15 cigarette a day person which means I also have 10-15 cups of coffee...horrid isn't it! So going off cigarettes for me can potentially mean that someone in the household could end up headless! Alright, it isn't that bad (don't think)...but I do have to consider that the potential for turning into the Incredible Hulk minus the bulk is there. With Resolve, I was absolutely anything but a mean old ogre. I was happy, content and boy was I impressed! Not sticking with the program though was actually a good thing as it turns out.

Yesterday I decided it was time to give quitting a serious run again and this time I am more than ready, but I am a chicken when it comes to quitting cold turkey. As there are more in the house who smoke, quitting can be a challenge, but not impossible as I found out. I decided to become more diligent with Resolve and truly resolve to make things work this time. I used a total of 3 lozenges and from 7:00 a.m. yesterday til this morning at 7:30, I'd smoked 6 cigarettes, most of which had been between 7:00 and 2:00 Thursday, my boring time and a few that burned away without my touching them thanks to my growing passion with SR ;)! From 2:00 until this morning I had zero cigarettes and didn't even miss them! Mind you, my coffee consumption (my biggest trigger) was also reduced greatly but fortunately, I was able to gulp one down just before bed and this morning I was still headache free.

I had to do a review!! So, while sucking on a lozenge...I decided to do a search on the active ingredient found in Resolve which is Cestemenol-350. It was 350mg per lozenge in the package I have however the manufacturer has since knocked that down to 150mg per lozenge. Well, shocked is probably the best way to describe my first reaction to what I found with disappointment a very close second. Time for a cigarette & a coffee!! Cestemenol-350 (C-350 (tm)) is a combination of Passion Flower and Balsam Bark which is withdrawn through fermentation. Sounds innocent enough. Unfortunately it is not approved for use in either Canada or the US and obviously isn't approved at a 3500mg dose/day. Health Canada's warning to remove Resolve from store shelves July 2007 and the FDA failing to approve this product for distribution in the US hasn't, from what I've seen, pushed Winning Combination, Inc. to withdraw or cease sale of this product. Even at the current 150mg/lozenge (1150mg/day) I have not been able to find any information that indicates Resolve is now safe for consumption. It's still available online, and through a US site where you can purchase & sign up for the support program however. As late as May of this year Resolve was still on the shelves of at least one retailer in my area.

So what's the big deal? Well, C-350(tm) is said to cause liver, kidney &/or red blood cell damage if taken in 'excessive amounts'. Scary isn't it. A 3500mg/day does sound pretty hefty now that I'm aware of the risks, even though I know of many natural herbal products that recommend that dosage with no problems.

My first cigarette of the day is usually combined with my first cup of Java, about 1 hour after rising. Today, I had no intentions of smoking at all...I didn't even have the urge or desire to smoke. I even drank a cup of coffee (one of my triggers) and not a thing! My husband smoked...didn't bother me! My last lozenge had been last night at 9:00 pm. Yahoo and goodie for me!! Well, wasn't that short lived. I still intend to quit, but it looks like Resolve won't be a part of that process - at least not right now. No more 'natural, nicotine free' solution until I find another - hopefully. I already have to do several blood tests per year thanks to medications I must take that unfortunately pose similar risks. Adding Resolve to the mix is a risk I'd rather not take.

I do recommend though that anyone considering or currently using this product...not do so and the Agencies recommending the recalls suggest anyone who has the Resolve product return it to the place of purchase. I'll continue to watch for changes in the recall notice and should this product eventually meet the approval status, I'll be first in line to purchase it again. Until then I'll be dragging out the tools we used way back in the 80's and following a program that was successful for me the last time, even though I'm not certain whether it really was the program or the fact that it cost me $295!! Either way, I know something's going to work again 'cause I'm certainly ready!