New technology may help smokers quit

In keeping with a recent Orange County ban on smoking in public areas, a Chapel Hill business is now doing its part to rid the streets of cigarette smoke.

e-Nicotine, a local startup company, is developing technology to help people stop smoking. The technology will provide a dose of pure nicotine and enhance the quitting process by monitoring a smoker’s progress.

“The device is composed of two components: a reusable controller with levels of cessation and a disposable cartridge that houses the nicotine,” said Michael Hufford, chief medical officer of e-Nicotine Technology.

But before Hufford can bring his device to the public, his company has to come up with $3 million for additional research.

“We are actively fundraising and speaking to venture capitalists and angel investors,” he said.

Hufford also has his sights set on passing several safety regulations.

“We have to submit an application with safety studies in animals and effectiveness studies in people to the Center of Tobacco Products,” Hufford said.

Kurt Ribisl, a health behavior professor at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, said the FDA has recently increased its interests in regulating products like Hufford’s.

Ribisl said with the rising popularity of e-cigarettes and other smoking technologies, the FDA has renewed its desire to further regulate the tobacco industry.

“The key thing to figure out is how to regulate these devices,” he said. “Perhaps as a tobacco product or medication, but they need to be properly regulated.”

Unlike e-cigarettes, Hufford said his e-Nicotine device will offer the smoker a more direct approach to kicking the habit.

“Our device is fundamentally different in two ways: it effectively delivers nicotine to the deep lung area and provides e-health tools, which actively help smokers achieve their goals,” Hufford said.

But it will take a few years to test the device’s popularity.

“We expect it will be about three years before the device reaches the market,” Hufford said.

Until then, Stacy Shelp, spokeswoman for the Orange County Health Department, said her department offers alternative services to aid residents in quitting, like the Freshstart program and the smoking Quitline.

Shelp said she is optimistic about the idea of a smoke-free Orange County and the possibility of new cessation technologies.

“We want to make it as easy and accessible as possible for people to stop smoking,” Shelp said.

Contact the desk editor at city@dailytarheel.com.