Here's one candy you won't be popping indiscriminately: lollipops laced with nicotine, the latest entry in the stop-smoking derby.
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Independent pharmacists across the country are making these nicotine lollipops and selling them under brand names such as NicoStop, No Smoke, NicoPop and Likatine. Many of the pops are being sold over the Internet through druggists' Web sites.
The Food and Drug Administration ruled Wednesday the lollipops are unapproved drugs and therefore need to pass extensive tests to show whether they are safe and effective. The agency also sent warning letters to pharmacies in Massachusetts, Mississippi and Illinois that were selling the nicotine products over the Internet.
Most sites say a prescription is required, but critics fear that it is possible to buy the products online without a prescription or proof of age. "Nicotine is a strong and addictive drug, and should be used only under the supervision of a health professional," says Carlo Michelotti, chief executive of the California Pharmacists Association in Sacramento.
So far, the nicotine lollipops have avoided regulatory scrutiny because they're made by compound pharmacists, licensed druggists who produce custom medications like old-time apothecaries.
These pharmacists are allowed to make special formulations when doctors request them for their patients. However, marketing these products over the Internet crosses into a gray area of questionable legality. But sales of the products -- sold in flavors such as apricot, eggnog and tutti-frutti -- are soaring, according to pharmacists. The pops are designed to take the edge off cravings for nicotine.
Community Drug, an independent, compounding pharmacy in Greenfield, has offered Nico-Quit Pops for six to eight months and reports that they're a popular item. They come in 2 milligram or 4 milligram cherry-flavored lollipops that sell for $3.50 or $4.50 per lollipop, respectively.
Pennsylvania has not required a prescription for these. Community Drug sells them individually in child-safe packages.
People who suck on the lollipop for 20 to 30 seconds get the same amount of nicotine found in a cigarette, said Nick Lipnichan of the pharmacy. They then re-wrap it to save for the next craving.
Ads on the Internet claim the lollipops work better than patches or gum because they not only suppress tobacco withdrawal symptoms, but give people more control over dosages. Pharmacists selling the products also say that the pops help satisfy the hand-to-mouth oral fixation that's part of the cigarette habit.
Pharmacists say the pops seem more effective than over-the-counter remedies, like the patch or nicotine gum. "We've had very positive results," said Jeffrey Alan Barris, owner of Pacifica Pharmacy in Torrance, Calif., which has been selling the nicotine lollipops for about two years.
He sells about 200 suckers a month and estimates that "70 percent to 80 percent of the people who use these lollipops stop smoking."
But, he cautions, "they should only be sold by prescription. They're not candy."
Health Editor Virginia Linn contributed to this report.
