Chris Steele

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

is a British

medical doctor A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

, and the resident doctor on

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

's ''This Morning'' daytime magazine show, where he has appeared weekly since the show first aired in 1988.

Work on nicotine addiction

Steele became interested in treating his patients who smoked in the early 1970s and is now recognised as an international expert in

smoking cessation Smoking cessation, usually called quitting smoking or stopping smoking, is the process of discontinuing tobacco smoking. Tobacco smoke contains nicotine, which is addictive and can cause dependence. As a result, nicotine withdrawal often make ...

and

nicotine addiction Nicotine is a natural product, naturally produced alkaloid in the nightshade family of plants (most predominantly in tobacco and ''Duboisia hopwoodii'') and is widely used recreational drug use, recreationally as a stimulant and anxiolytic. As ...

. He has lectured on this subject in over 27 countries around the world, making many media appearances.

Fight to have nicotine gum prescriptions paid by NHS

In 1984, he was faced with a dilemma regarding the prescribing of

nicotine gum Nicotine gum is a type of chewing gum that delivers nicotine to the body. It is used as an aid in nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), a process for smoking cessation and quitting smokeless tobacco. The nicotine is delivered to the bloodstream via ...

(

Nicorette Nicorette is the brand name of a number of products for nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) that contain nicotine polacrilex. Developed in the late 1970s in Sweden by in the form of a chewing gum, Nicorette was the first nicotine replacement p ...

) for smokers who wanted help in giving up their cigarettes. At that time in the UK, nicotine gum was a

prescription only medicine A prescription drug (also prescription medication or prescription medicine) is a pharmaceutical drug that legally requires a medical prescription to be dispensed. In contrast, over-the-counter drugs can be obtained without a prescription. The rea ...

(POM). It was in fact the only POM amongst thousands that could not be prescribed at

NHS The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

expense; in other words, it was not reimbursable under the socialised medicine system that was in effect at that time in the UK. A

Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their ow ...

committee, known as the Advisory Committee on Borderline Substances, recommended that Nicorette should not be allowed on NHS prescription, because it decreed that "Anti smoking preparations are not regarded as drugs." Dr Steele regarded that nicotine was most certainly a drug and a powerful one at that, and so prescribed nicotine gum on NHS prescriptions for those motivated smokers who wanted to give up smoking. As a result of "breaking the rules", Steele faced various disciplinary hearings, eventually having to present his case to a Tribunal of Independent Referees. At that tribunal a statement for the

Secretary of State for Health The secretary of state for health and social care, also referred to as the health secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Department of Health and Social Care. The incumbent ...

read as follows: "Smoking is a habit it is not a disease or condition even though It may be a contributary cause of, or may aggravate, a disease or condition such as bronchitis, carcinoma of the lung, arteriosclerosis and so on." The tribunal's conclusions to "Is tobacco dependency a disease?", dated 6 July 1984, which Steele's supporters regarded as a vindication, were as follows: * "We find it ought to be so considered." * "We find that nicotine prescribed for this purpose has both a pharmacological and a therapeutic effect." * "We find that this method of treatment is the most effective that has so far been evolved."

Honours

In April 2010, Steele was awarded an

in recognition of his services to the medical profession and broadcasting.

Work on ITVs ''This Morning''

Steele has appeared on

's daytime magazine show '' This Morning'' since its first episode in 1988 and has remained the resident health expert since then. He is now the only original, longest serving member of the ''This Morning'' team.

Family

Dr Steele's son, Andrew Steele, is an international athlete competing in the 400 m for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

Notes

References

External links

''This Morning''
at

itv.com itv.com is the main website of ITV plc, the UK's largest commercial television broadcaster which operates 13 out of 15 regions on the ITV network under the ITV brand (or the UTV brand in Northern Ireland). The website offers online streaming, ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Steele, Chris Living people British television personalities 21st-century English medical doctors Members of the Order of the British Empire People in health professions from Manchester Place of birth missing (living people) 1945 births