Nicotine Addiction ! Interesting article on why it is hard to stop AND why its worth it .

[thenunn]

Nicotine tricks your brain by stimulating the reward pathways with a shot of dopamine, the hormone that tells us that things like food and sex are pleasurable. It also increases activity in the cholinergic pathways of the brain. These pathways are concentrated in the brain stem and are believed to be involved in cognitive functions, like memory. An increase here makes you feel sharper and more focused. As if that's not enough, nicotine also increases your endorphin levels, the proteins that give you feelings of euphoria. At night when you aren't smoking, those pathways are shut down again and you wake craving cigarettes. One-third of all smokers have their first cigarette of the day within 10 minutes of waking up [source: FDA].

Naturally occurring nicotine levels found in tobacco already make smokers want to smoke. Then the Marlboro Man came along and tipped the scales more by souping-up the nicotine with the addition of sugar. When sugar is burned, it produces a chemical called acetaldehyde. Research studies on lab rats have shown that the little rodents will repeatedly self-administer shots of acetaldehyde much like they would nicotine.

Cigarette maker Phillip Morris conducted internal studies that showed that acetaldehyde and nicotine make for pretty good bedfellows. On average, lab rats self-administered 240 doses of acetaldehyde per day, compared to 90 doses of nicotine. When the two chemicals were combined and the rats could choose to administer the cocktail over the individual ingredients, they did so in spades -- with a whopping 400 doses per day [source: Ralof]. Nicotine replacement therapies like gum and patches may help to stave of the desire for nicotine, but they don't touch the acetaldehyde. Another interesting factoid -- when the body begins to break down alcohol, it produces acetaldehyde. So if you have a harder time not reaching for a smoke when you have a beer in your hand, it's no coincidence. Once the acetaldehyde is active in your system with that drink, you'll crave more in the form of a cigarette.

Another thing that makes it tough to stop smoking is something called free-base nicotine. This is a variation of the molecular structure of nicotine in which a hydrogen ion is missing. Why is that hydrogen ion special? Without it, nicotine vaporizes more easily into a gas, putting it on the express train to your lungs and from there, a quick ride to the brain. Any drug delivered to the brain more quickly is more addictive. Free-base nicotine basically does for smokers what crack does to cocaine users.

Here's where it gets interesting. Some brands of commercial cigarettes have been found to contain 10 to 20 times the amount of free-base nicotine than previously believed [source: Medical News Today]. Not only that, but the free-base nicotine is also packed more heavily toward the front of the cigarette, so those first few puffs really pack a wallop. Is it by some miracle that nicotine transforms into the free-base variety? Hardly. It's helped along by the addition of ammonia to your smoky treat.

Besides the fact that cigarette manufacturers have done everything in their power to make it as hard as possible to quit smoking, there are some other factors that go into it as well.

The good news is that quitting can and does happen all the time to all kinds of people. Some do it by going cold turkey. Some need the help of nicotine replacement therapy recare.com). Hypnosis works for some folks, and others need more intense prescription medication to help them kick the habit. Two million people quit smoking every year, and there's no reason you can't be one of them. No matter how many years you've smoked, your body will immediately begin to repair itself once you've put out your last butt. It's intimidating, so you might try by cutting back to begin with. A review of smoking studies in people that had no desire to quit showed that cutting down often led to complete cessation

[Bellabella 18 Months Winner]

Hi Jan, thanks or posting, a very interesting read... Day 4 for you today... Stick with it, you can do it xxx

[Hidden]

Hi Jan, I've been at work all day so though I read your article this morning at work, this is the first chance I've had to comment. I can't believe this has only received 1 comment. I have always suspected there was more to cigarettes than just the nicotine and suspected there were 'added extras' to make cigarettes even more addictive but this is an absolute disgrace. My husband said to me the other day here we have a product that is known to cause ill health, its packaging is filled with horrific pictures and it is now hidden behind closed doors and yet it still sells, how many marketeers wish they had a product that good.

Thanks for posting it. I always like to know the science behind everything. It's no good people telling me something does harm, I need to know how, Now I know. I remember reading somewhere recently about a man who interviewed representatives of the tobacco industry who were supporting some group that was speaking up on behalf of smokers rights to the freedom to smoke. He asked each of the tobacco representatives if they smoked, each and every one replied "I choose not to". I wonder why. There's always a justifiable case to bring back hanging isn't there.

[Hidden]

Incidentally, the Tobacco companies are amongst the large corporations who pay as little corporation tax as possible.

[EmJay Partner]

This is a fab read Jan, thank you for sharing

It's really interesting and does make you think. I read a great article about sugar the other day that somebody posted on Twitter - saying very similar.

I used to provide stop smoking support within prisons and whilst 80% pf prisoners smoke, a very high number of them took quite an unbelievably large amount of sugar in their brews too!

If everybody would take the time to read and understand about 'how', the reasons 'why' and the psychological aspects of smoking, then realise the importance of planning their quit attempt beforehand, this would lead to a 'painless' quit attempt.

The psychological sides to stopping are far more beneficial for the smoker to understand and would help them a great deal if they did.

This is a post that I'd like to keep to hand to repost again in the future, if you don't mind?

Thanks again Jan

[fusedplug in reply to EmJay]

I used to be one of those "prisoners " but now lead a better life and have not been in since 2005 (never going back to prison again I wasted way too much time) I bumped into someone I knew a little while ago and prisoners are now allowed to buy vapes ... this will help tremendously in there.

[thenunn]

Hi Emjay,ofcourse you can..i cant remember where i found it but i was amazed and stunned ! ofcourse if the government didnt make so much money out of smoking it would easy to ban it make it illegal..but that they will never do,so they pay a lip service.I was amazed how many thousands of years its been used throughout the world..

jan

[fusedplug]

Vaping and willpower are the best combination .. so many new vape designs etc out there now there is fierce competition now so they are getting better and better. It works for me I'd rather vape all my life than ever smoke again it's more the tar and smoke related chemicals that worried me I can live with the less harmful water vapour from vaping and nicotine itself doesn't bother me in the least, A lot of propaganda was surrounding vaping and I listened to none of it because my health improved so much when I took up vaping that the later articles coming out saying it was more harmful than ciggies really made me laugh at the time especially when it turned out the evil tobacco companies were behind the "research" and reports (surprise surprise).

I hope this convinces those that were sucked in by the ridiculous claims that there is literally nothing to worry about. There is more harm in going outside and breathing in car fumes so think about it that way