Nicotine gum VS Cigarettes - how much less harmful is it?

We are all aware of the long-term damage caused to our health by smoking but is chewing nicotine gum that much better for you in the long run? What if you become addicted to the gum as a replacement for the ciggies - what would that do to your health?

Nicotine gum is supposed to supress your craving for a cigarette. Your craving will not be forever therefore you will not chew nicotine gum forever either. As your cravings subside so will the popping of the nicotine gum. Cigarettes as we all know are highly addictive - they have many chemicals (too numerous for me to mention ) Nicotine gum do not have all those chemicals in the gum. Many people have stopped smoking using the nicorette gum. Myself included. So to make a long story short...cigarettes are WAY more harmful than nicotine gum ask any Physician.

How do you stop an addiction to nicotine gum? If someone is trying to quit smoking cigarettes and trys the gum or patch, they might get addicted to the alternative which is bad because you are still getting the nicotine into your blood system. I believe the only way to safely quit is cold turkey. Much easier said then done.

Um, any kind long term use of nicotine in your system is bad, no matter how you get it. Its the same as prescribing methadone to a heroin junkie. Just because you are taking something else, doesn't mean its any better for you.

The only way to kick a habit of any kind is to go cold turkey.

its not physically harmful,its the chemicals in ciggies that do the damage.
i.e.cyanide
carbon monoxide...etc.

Nicotine gum, lozengers etc
are a safe way unharmful way of giving your body nicotine.
Cigarettes have many harmful poisons carbon monoxide etc
answer is simple.

i dont think anyone has died of cancer chewing nicotine gum. the only thing that your addicted to is the nicotine itself, and if im right (which im probably not) nicotine does not harm your health much at all, its the 3000 or so chemicals that you inhale evertytime you have a ciggie that does the damage. you can probably chew nicotine gum forever and it wont do alot to your health, they taste rank though and no doubt make you feel ill if you did that. better than havin cancer though.

i do know people who are addicted to the gum, but i guess the gum does not fill your lungs full of tar, or effect your breathing, or increase your chances of cancer or heart disease.