Glenn Connelly / Photo Editor

The Nicorette gum flavor doesn’t ever seem to last long enough and you’ve been trying to find a decent place to put your NicoDerm CQ patch. According to the American Cancer Society, some 46 million Americans have quit smoking for good – all having used different methods to stop their addiction.

If you are like most smokers who, aside from being concerned about weight gain and stress after quitting are frustrated with failed options, you may have neglected to explore a new technique to quit smoking – laser therapy.

The American Cancer Society describes low-level laser therapy, or cold-laser therapy, as “the use of low-intensity or low levels of laser light.” The technique uses cold lasers in an acupuncture-like practice where the beams of the laser are supposed to stimulate certain acupoints on the body. When these acupoints are stimulated, the smoker allegedly releases endorphins and becomes relaxed. The release of the endorphins acts to simulate the effect nicotine typically has on the brain and relieve addiction traits.

The treatment is recommended to patients who want the results that acupuncture has on the body’s acupoints without the pain of needles.

One Web site, www.waystostopsmoking.org provides information on alternative therapies to help smokers quit. It describes procedures such as acupuncture, hypnosis and laser therapy. The Web site says the newest treatment in America to help smokers quit is laser therapy and “some clinics offering this procedure are reporting a success rate of 64 percent.”

Locally the Matrix Laser Centers offer a laser therapy treatment for smokers. Located at 4295 Gesner St. Suite 3A in San Diego, the center has been featured on numerous media outlets including San Diego’s Channel 10 and Channel 8.

It’s San Diego’s first and only cessation clinic that uses low-level laser therapy. The laser therapy is used not only to help people attempting to quit smoking but also for those who want to manage their weight and control stress.

Aside from having a trained, professional team, all staff at the Matrix are ex-smokers who, according to the Web site www.matrixlasercenters.com, “fully realize the tremendous power nicotine has over our lives.”

Technicians at the Matrix clinic who administer laser therapy have all been trained in the United Kingdom, Canada or the United States to perform treatment.

The treatment itself is a “Multi-Phasic approach” that aims to eliminate the desire for the drug, deal with the psychological factors of the addiction and support the body through proper nutrition.

The laser used is a soft laser that the Web site says stimulates specific energy points in the ear, face and hands, all of which are related to the addiction. The endorphins released in the treatment make it easier for patients “to cope with the addiction, withdrawal symptoms and cravings that arise from giving up nicotine,” the Web site said.

Matrix also has therapists on staff who offer education and counseling during treatment, with a focus on withdrawal, cravings, current habits and nutrition. The combination of laser treatment and therapy has the Matrix center claiming to “help the body become nicotine-free within seven days.”

Treatment at the Matrix Laser Center lasts approximately one hour and costs $399.

If within the first six weeks a patient has not taken nicotine and is still having problems quitting, the center offers a booster treatment free of charge. Booster treatments are about $180 each after the first complimentary one.

While Web sites and running practices of laser therapy claim high success rates, the American Cancer Society advises there is no scientific evidence yet that has established these therapy options as an effective method to help smokers quit.

But if the gum doesn’t satisfy your taste buds and the patch isn’t worth the effort, maybe it’s time to consider zapping those addictive acupoints.

For a list of local physician acupuncturists, visit the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture at www.medicalacupuncture.org.