Is a single small session of lasers aimed at certain points of your ear enough to stop smoking, as some methods widely available on the internet now offer? Of course, when you are desperate to turn your back on cigarettes, the offer is tempting. But for Daniel Thomas, it is above all a lie. Explanations.
An unproven method
“The techniques sold today by companies like LaserOstop are likened to acupuncture and auriculotherapy, explains the expert. However, these are complementary methods that have never demonstrated their effectiveness in smoking cessation. Moreover, the simple fact that these people sometimes give you the promise of 85% success is already an admission: it’s window dressing, and we know it when we use validated methods.
But that’s not all : “In these pharmacies, the laser technique is practiced by people who are not doctors. It is not possible! Moreover, it is very expensive. Up to 200 euros per session. Even if you are obviously told that “It only takes one and if it doesn’t work, the second is offered… They are charlatans. The Ministry of Health has already been alerted to this problematic subject.”
The art of supporting smokers
Skeptical (to say the least) vis-à-vis the laser, Daniel Thomas nevertheless explains that auriculotherapy and acupuncture can be used “as support methods, without promises of fabulous results and without doing without effective things, such as nicotine substitutes.”
So many techniques inscribed in a deeper smoker-practitioner relationship: “It’s a bit like hypnotists. Some are soup sellers, when other people practice hypnosis in a complementary way. But it is then above all the exchange and the relationship between the practitioner and the subject that will do the job. Also, it works better when the subject is convinced that the method works. For example if he knows someone who quit thanks to hypnosis.”
Morality? Beware of miracles and trust health professionals.
