Nicotine is a toxin within the tobacco plant, and its own main function would be to serve as deterrent with regards to insects wanting to eat the plant. Nicotine is reported to be more lethal than arsenic, venoms of different snakes, strychnine, etc. Interestingly though, once nicotine reaches the reward pathways in the human brain, a surge of dopamine is released, leading to the much discussed ‘aah’ factor.
The most common method of nicotine finding its way into our system is through tobacco smoke. It is due to the nicotine within the cigarette that the act of smoking seems pleasurable. And nicotine is undoubtedly the biggest reason that the cigarette industry continues to grow at a steady pace. Nikotiinipussit However, smoking counts as a major preventable reason behind death/disease, and also causes a significant amount of premature deaths each year.
Tobacco smoke contains a plethora of chemicals, and nicotine is amongst the primary ones. Do know that smokeless tobacco contains nicotine as well. Nicotine dependency is known as to be amongst the hardest to break, and also whenever a smoker witnesses the damage that nicotine could cause first-hand, smoking can be quite difficult to give up. While it is the nicotine that keeps a smoker returning for more, another constituents within cigarettes lead to a considerably higher rate of cancer, strokes, and heart & lung diseases in smokers. Nicotine dependency can also lead to infertility, complications during pregnancy along with complications in a newborn baby’s health.
THE CONSEQUENCES of Nicotine:
Not only does nicotine work in the body releasing dopamine, in addition, it activates the pathways that release adrenaline and serotonin, thereby impacting impulsivity and mood. Over a period of time the physical changes build a new ‘neuro chemical’ system which revolves entirely around the presence of nicotine within the system. At this stage, the individual is truly addicted. Attempts to stop using nicotine at this stage or later would almost definitely bring about withdrawal symptoms. The protective adjustments made by the brain would make sure that any attempt made to stop smoking would result in discomfort as the brain’s circuitry senses the absence of nicotine as an underlying cause for concern.
Statistics:
A lot more than fifteen thousand Australians die due to smoking each year, and is the largest ‘preventable’ reason behind early death and disease. The percentage of people aged over 14 who smoke everyday in Australia went down considerably, from 30.5% in 1988 right down to 16.6% in 2007. Around the world, ten percent of the adult population smokes; and in america this figure stands at 20%. In america alone around 440,000 people die every year because of tobacco related illnesses. Now, you can find around 1.3-1.4 billion smokers on the planet, with a big chunk surviving in developing countries. And given the ongoing trends, by 2020 tobacco would account for approximately 10 million deaths every year.
Factual statements about Nicotine Dependency:
Nicotine is poisonous, and the reason that reason a smoker will not immediately die is due to the minuscule levels of nicotine within each cigarette.
Nicotine is highly addictive, and nicotine dependency is often compared with heroin and cocaine dependency with regard to difficulty to quit.
Relapses are very common in efforts to quit smoking.
Aside from nicotine, cigarettes have over 4,000 different chemicals; a lot of which are carcinogenic (cancer causing substances).
Smoking for about 15 years, at about 20 cigarettes each day, should result in about one kg of tar in a smoker’s lungs.
A regular smoker’s life expectancy would decrease by around 7 to 8 years (at about 7 to 8 minutes per cigarette).
Every month, tobacco companies in Australia lose around 12,000 customers. While around 10,000 have the ability to quit, the majority of the others are ones who have passed away because of smoking related illnesses.
Data collected from the ‘Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’ implies that almost 80% of the smokers have tried quitting at least once, and in the last year a lot more than 30% have tried stopping.
The Alternatives – Quitting Help:
Nicotine Free Cigarettes:
Nicotine free cigarettes are ones that not contain any tobacco or nicotine. One can find several brands in terms of these nicotine free cigarettes, and these cigarettes use various herbs/plants as a base. These cigarettes tend to be used as substitutes to smoking conventional cigarettes, and a number of people utilize them as nicotine cessation aids. However, owing to the various compounds within these cigarettes, smoking them isn’t entirely safe, with research showing they too can be carcinogenic.
Nicotine Replacement Therapy:
Nicotine replacement therapy refers to a smoker quitting smoking but utilizing a different medium to obtain his/her quota of nicotine supply. Different NRT aids include nicotine gums, patches, lozenges, inhalers, and nasal sprays. The usage of NRT aids is thought to increase the chances of quitting by around 50%, but in order to succeed, additional support that is provided to the average person by means of counselling, etc. also play an important role. When a person stops smoking, these aids continue steadily to supply him/her with the nicotine that’s needed is to keep the withdrawal symptoms at bay, and the intake of nicotine through this route is regulated and gradually reduced. The usage of nicotine replacement therapy to give up smoking is generally is 8 to 12 week long exercise.
Even though an increasing number of smokers continue to battle their nicotine dependency, increasing numbers of people continue steadily to smoke their first cigarette. The sensation of euphoria that’s often associated with smoking is a result of the nicotine present therein, and this is what keeps the smoker coming back for more. The good thing is that awareness in everyone is on the rise, and help to battle nicotine dependency is available in various forms. If you wish to fight nicotine dependency and feel that it is an uphill battle, at least take heart in realizing that there’s plenty of help that one could avail of.