Unassisted smoking cessation attempts end unsuccessfully within 12 months in 95% of cases. Subjectively they suffer from reduced concentration, disturbed sleep, and a compulsory craving for smoking ( 7, 8). On the other hand, they include the effects of nicotine on the dopaminergic, serotonergic, and noradrenergic transmitter systems-among others-as well as neuroadaptation in the sense of upregulation of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (also known as the alpha-4 beta-2 nicotinic receptor), which-among others-is also assumed to be associated with the vegetative withdrawal symptoms ( 6).ĭuring the first two or more weeks of a quit attempt, smokers experience withdrawal symptoms, with increased irritability, aggressiveness, and edginess. The crucial perpetuating factors for regular tobacco consumption are on the one hand operant and classic conditioning processes that affect behavior. For this reason it is of vital importance for smokers to stop smoking as early as possible, completely, and permanently. From middle age, smokers lose about three months of their lifespan for every additional year of tobacco consumption ( 4). In Germany, this affects 125 000 people per year. Smokers are at risk of dying prematurely (on average 10 years earlier than non-smokers) as a result of tobacco consumption ( 4). OAlthough smoking tobacco is the greatest avoidable risk factor for a multitude of diseases ( 1, 2), 28% of the population in Germany still smokes ( 3).