Drinkers may feel less inclined to go to the pub

The patches will contain both nicotine, to help smokers quit, and a compound called mecamylamine, which tackles the temptation to drink.

Alcohol consumption in drinkers was reduced by using the patch, researchers at Duke University, North Carolina, found.

However, alcohol campaigners said it was better for people to simply stick to recommended amounts of alcohol.

The patches would be worn at all times, which has the benefit of keeping medication levels in the blood constant.

A more user friendly approach to curbing excessive alcohol consumption is an attractive idea Michelle Wilson, Society of Chemical Industry

A patch purely for drinkers who do not smoke could be developed at a later date.

The most common current treatment is antabuse which causes drinkers to have the symptoms of a bad hangover.

Mecamylamine will instead reduce people's desire to have a drink.

It works by affecting dopamine pathways in the brain, which are stimulated by alcohol and nicotine.

Enjoyment

Jed Rose, director of the nicotine research programme at Duke University, said: "Basically, mecamylamine removes some of the positive enjoyment of these drugs."

He added: "We have observed that mecamylamine, administered in combination with a nicotine patch, reduces alcohol consumption in light drinkers.

"We hope that it can also help heavy drinkers cut down."

However, the Society of Chemical Industry, said the patch's effectiveness on curbing drinkers' desires had yet to be proved.

Michelle Wilson, of the society's biotechnology group, said: "While a more user friendly approach to curbing excessive alcohol consumption is an attractive idea, it is still far from being established that this patch could have a real impact on this issue."

And the Alcohol Concern group said the patch was "unlikely to have a significant effect" on the UK's estimated 2.9 million people addicted to alcohol.

It advised people to stick to the recommended limits for alcohol consumption which are two to three units a day for women and three to four units a day for men.