Are the nicotine patches better for you than cigarettes why they both have nicotine whats the difference?

my boyfriend has a knee operation coming up. he was told he needs to cut back on his smoking or quit. he had a minor knee operation recently and it took 2 month's to heal instead of 3 to4 days.[because of smoking] now he's on the patch[still getting nicotine] so is this any better,will he recover faster because he's not actually smoking? whats the difference?

Generally, the nicotine is not the problem (except that it's addictive). The major problem with smoking is the carbon monoxide, tar, and other components of the smoke. The patch replaces the nicotine, making it easier (for some people) to quit smoking. But - nicotine does restrict blood flow, which probably slows healing. So, ideally he should quit, but the patch would be an improvement. (PS - I'm a smoker - haven't been able to quit yet...)

No smoke-nicotine is not a good thing, but in and of itself it's not all that harmful.

Cigarettes are made with more things than just nicotine: ammonia, for one. Do some research about the patch and you'll see the benefits.

As an ex-smoker, I can tell you by not smoking, you're not getting the poisons in your system that are produced by a lit cigarette. I used nicotine gum to help me quit.

the tar is what makes cigarettes worse for you. plugs up your lungs etc. the patch does not have that component.

The difference is that the patches dont have the additives in them like cigarettes do and they dont give you carbon monoxide also. So yes he should heal faster but the addiction will take a while to get over it matters on how long he has smoked and his mental state, I repeat his mental state dictates the rate and chances he has to quit

I have never heard that smoking or nicotine was a factor in delayed healing.

The only difference between the patch and cigarettes is that cigarettes give the body other intruders to the body besides nicotine. There is tar and other "filler" ingredients inserted into the finished prodect by big companies.

If he does ever go back to cigarettes, assuming he doesn't decide to quit since he's all ready on the patch, I would recommend he switch to American Spirit (unless they have changed their practices after the recent cigarette lawsuits) or rolling his own with raw tobacco that can be bought in a tobacco store.

they're basically the same, but smoking causes damage to your lungs and cigarettes themselves have many carcinogens (things that cause cancer). it's better to use the patch then smoke and it will help him recover faster because smoking also lowers your ability to fight off disease/illness.

it's better for him because cigarettes have tar and all those additives in them where as the patches just have the nicotine in them.....

i dont smoke.

because cancer is easier to remove from your skin than it is from your lungs and you dont have to take everyone else down with you breathing second hand smoke