Famous Smoke Shop Launches "Pharma-Infused" Cigars

Easton, PA, April 1, 2015 (Newswire.com) - “If I'd taken my doctor's advice and quit smoking when he advised me to, I wouldn't have lived to go to his funeral.” That quip by the legendary comedian, George Burns, who lived to be 100 years old, may have been a joke at the time, but Famous Smoke Shop is quite serious about their new CIGARx cigars selection, a line of pharmaceutical infused cigars whereby aficionados will be able to enjoy the benefits of taking medication while relaxing with a good cigar.

Thanks to recent infusion technology advancements, the same methods by which flavors are added to premium cigars, prescription medications can now be infused into cigars without affecting the flavor characteristics of the blend. For example, what if you could smoke a good cigar with a dose of esomeprazole to help prevent an attack of gastric reflux? The answer to that and other questions is available now at Famous Smoke Shop.

We had much better success with cigars because they are a natural tobacco product and take longer to smoke; therefore the meds are delivered more slowly and safely.

Dr. Emanuel Tarkofsky, Tobacco Researcher

Therapeutic Tobacco

Famous has released their pharma-infused cigars under the brand name, "CIGARx™. In addition to their effectiveness, to ensure the cigars will be as high in quality and flavor, CIGARx will be handmade in Nicaragua by Nestor Plasencia using an all-organically-grown tobacco blend similar to the Plasencia Reserva Organica selection.

"Because CIGARx will also be used for medicinal purposes, I wanted to make sure the tobaccos were as natural as possible," said Famous Smoke Shop CEO, Arthur Zaretsky, who is also an avid proponent of organic and no-GMO foods.

Prescription Required

Initial pharmaceuticals being infused include medication used to treat anxiety; a statin drug option is available for cigar smokers using CIGARx therapy to control high cholesterol, as are treatments for hypothyroidism, insomnia, hypertension and gastroesophageal reflux (GERD). As CIGARx Pharma-Infusions come in the form of a previously-approved delivery system, they are exempt from the Affordable Care Act’s Medical Device Excise Tax and covered under some private health insurance plans, as well as insurance policies purchased through any exchange set up as part of the ACA. Doctors and patients can view the available medications at http://www.famous-smoke.com/special-offers/cigarx .

“We stayed away from the anti-psychotics and antidepressant medications, simply due to the general warnings,” said Michael Vandenstockt, Famous Smoke Shop VP. “As for pain management in the case of rheumatoid and osteoarthritis, plans for prescription medications are on hold – but over the counter doses of NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) like acetaminophen are for sale.”

Initial plans for a hydrocodone-infused cigar were halted when the DEA issued a final rule in October of last year, switching hydrocodone combination products (like Vicodin©  and Lortab©) from Schedule III to Schedule II drugs. “We wouldn’t have been able to fill the prescriptions,” said Vandenstockt. “Once the classification was changed, it meant we couldn’t take the prescriptions over the phone. Or even refill the script, actually.”

Famous Merchandising Associate Jennifer Ryan noted that, while new infused cigars are coming, “as long as patients follow the recommended dosing, and are aware of the possible side effects, we think this can become an exceptional form of therapy.”

 Clinical Research Partners

Famous Smoke Shop partnered with the Research Medical Center Extension, which had already been running trials of drug infusions through alternative delivery systems. Dr. Emanuel Tarkofsky, a leading expert on tobacco pharma-infusion and instructor at the Extension, was asked if he would be willing to share his research on pharma-infused cigars with the popular online cigar retailer; some of which follows:

"We ran early trials with cigarette tobacco, but the chemicals produced by cigarette smoke interacted with most of the medications causing acute contraindications in 37% of the subjects," said Tarkofsky. "We had much better success with cigars because they are a natural tobacco product and take longer to smoke; therefore the meds are delivered more slowly and safely."

With Tarkofsky’s guidance, Famous agreed to bring the product to market, opening a licensed dispensing pharmacy within their Easton retail space. Patients now may have their doctors email the prescriptions to the pharmacy, or can phone them in as they would a traditional drug store – and fulfillment works similarly to other mail-order prescription plans.

“No need to inhale”

One of Dr. Tarkofsky's clinical studies showed that a group of patients who smoked pharma-infused cigars had virtually none or fewer contraindications when compared with the control group who took their meds orally.

"What we also learned from the earlier cigarette study was that inhaling caused some patients to overdose. Since there is no need to inhale, cigars are an ideal delivery system," Dr. Tarkofsky added.

For more information on CIGARx, visit http://www.famous-smoke.com/special-offers/cigarx/