Q. I have a friend who is 57 and never smoked. She fell and broke her hip a couple of months ago and now has taken up chewing nicotine gum like it was candy.
I can’t believe nicotine gum, which is for those trying to quit smoking, could be good for her in any way. I told her my concerns and she told me her doctor said it’s fine.
What kind of doctor would think it’s ok to use nicotine? What could chewing the gum do to her health, when she was never a smoker to begin with?
A. We share your concern. Fifteen years ago animal research demonstrated that nicotine has a negative impact on bone healing (Journal of Biomedical Materials Research, June 15, 1999). That might get her attention, since it takes time for a broken hip to heal. We are as puzzled as you are as to why she would have taken this up.
