NICE approve drug-free British quit smoking programme

World No Tobacco Day (31 May) heralds the news that Allen Carr’s Easyway to Stop Smoking live group seminars, the innovative British, drug-free quit smoking programme has finally received NICE approval, paving the way for smokers to access the seminars free of charge via the NHS as an alternative to NRT, e-cigarettes/vaping, and other pharmacological treatments.

NICE found that the Allen Carr's Easyway live group seminars were not only cost-effective but cost-saving when compared to existing treatments and that the evidence proving the effectiveness of the method is comparable to that which exists for nicotine e-cigarettes/vaping.

UK-based Allen Carr's Easyway, celebrating the 40th Anniversary of its conception this year, already has a proven track record of providing live group seminars as part of local authority smoking cessation services after conducting a number of successful pilots over the past three years - with more local authorities already commissioning their services as a result.

The Easyway live seminars, which can be taken "in the room" or via Zoom, comprise of a live presentation of the method delivered by a former smoker who used the method to quit themselves. The seminars guide smokers through a process described as "cognitive restructuring," helping smokers understand why they smoke and how their addiction to nicotine creates a flawed belief system – a system that not only keeps them hooked, and discourages them from attempting to stop, but also causes immense discomfort and difficulty when they do attempt to quit.

Once that flawed belief system is fully understood, smokers can actually enjoy the process of getting free from smoking. Most need just a single 5-6 hour seminar to succeed, but shorter back up sessions are available for the few that require them, along with post-seminar telephone, email, and text message support. The seminars are equally effective regardless of whether they are attended "in the room" or via Zoom.

John Dicey, Global CEO of Allen Carr's Easyway comments:

"This is one of the most significant days in the history of Allen Carr's Easyway, second only to the day, 40 years ago this month, when Allen Carr stubbed out his final cigarette and told his wife, Joyce, that he intended to cure the world of smoking. Well, we haven't quite got there yet – but with an estimated 50 million smokers helped worldwide we've made tremendous progress.

This guidance from NICE will enable us to help millions more UK smokers, many of whom are suffering as a result of health inequalities and the ongoing cost of living crisis. The fact that all smokers, regardless of income may now have an opportunity to enjoy this innovative, easy to understand, interactive, drug-free live seminar programme in the same way as paying members of the public, A-list celebrities, and those fortunate enough to have employer or health insurance funding - will make a major contribution to local authorities' levelling up efforts."

Professor Dan Frings, from the Centre for Addictive Behaviours Research at London South Bank University comments "The Allen Car's Easyway approach has been steadily gaining evidence from a variety of sources, and it is great to see NICE recognise its efficacy in their independent review. These updated NICE guidelines should encourage health care providers to adopt Allen Carr's Easyway to Stop Smoking live group seminars as an effective option for those quitting smoking."

The latest update of ‘Tobacco: preventing uptake, promoting quitting and treating dependence’ was published without publicity in August last year, but the ramifications of a drug-free alternative to vaping as a method of smoking cessation is only being realised this World No Tobacco Day (31 May).

Allen Carr’s Easyway have been working with the World Health Organisation, hundreds of corporate clients ranging from Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and IBM to Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, and IKEA.

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