Nicotine is a toxin found in the tobacco plant, and its main function would be to serve as deterrent with regards to insects wanting to eat the plant. Nicotine is said 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.

paras nikotiinipussi The most common method of nicotine finding its way into our bodies is through tobacco smoke. It is due to the nicotine present in 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 reliable pace. However, smoking counts as a significant preventable cause of death/disease, and also causes a significant number of premature deaths each year.

Tobacco smoke includes a plethora of chemicals, and nicotine is one of the primary ones. Can say for certain that smokeless tobacco contains nicotine aswell. Nicotine dependency is known as to be between the hardest to break, and also when a smoker witnesses the damage that nicotine can cause first-hand, smoking can be quite difficult to give up. While it may be the nicotine that keeps a smoker returning for more, the other constituents within cigarettes result in a considerably higher level of cancer, strokes, and heart & lung diseases in smokers. Nicotine dependency may also lead to infertility, complications during pregnancy and also complications in a new baby baby’s health.

The Effects of Nicotine:

Not only does nicotine work in the body releasing dopamine, it also activates the pathways that release adrenaline and serotonin, thereby impacting impulsivity and mood. Over a period the physical changes build a new ‘neuro chemical’ system which revolves entirely round the presence of nicotine within the system. At this stage, the average person is actually addicted. Attempts to stop using nicotine at this stage or later would almost definitely result in withdrawal symptoms. The protective adjustments made by the brain would ensure that any attempt made to stop smoking would result in discomfort as the brain’s circuitry senses the lack of nicotine as an underlying cause for concern.

Statistics:

A lot more than fifteen thousand Australians die because of smoking every year, and may be 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 down to 16.6% in 2007. Across the world, ten percent of the adult population smokes; and in the US this figure stands at 20%. In america alone around 440,000 people die each year due to tobacco related illnesses. Now, there are around 1.3-1.4 billion smokers in the world, with a large chunk surviving in developing countries. And given the ongoing trends, by 2020 tobacco would take into account approximately 10 million deaths each year.

Facts about Nicotine Dependency:

Nicotine is poisonous, and the reason why that reason that a smoker will not immediately die is due to the minuscule levels of nicotine present in each cigarette.
Nicotine is highly addictive, and nicotine dependency is frequently weighed against heroin and cocaine dependency in terms of difficulty to quit.
Relapses are very common in efforts to give up smoking.
Aside from nicotine, cigarettes have over 4,000 different chemicals; many of which are carcinogenic (cancer causing substances).
Smoking for around 15 years, at about 20 cigarettes each day, should bring about 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 manage to quit, a lot of the others are ones who’ve passed away because of smoking related illnesses.
Data collected from the ‘Australian Institute of Health insurance and Welfare’ implies that almost 80% of the smokers have tried quitting at least one time, and within the last year 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 will discover numerous 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 use them as nicotine cessation aids. However, owing to the various compounds present in these cigarettes, smoking them isn’t entirely safe, with research showing that they too can be carcinogenic.

Nicotine Replacement Therapy:

Nicotine replacement therapy identifies a smoker quitting smoking but utilizing a different medium to get his/her quota of nicotine supply. Different NRT aids include nicotine gums, patches, lozenges, inhalers, and nasal sprays. The application of NRT aids is thought to increase the chances of quitting by around 50%, however in order to achieve success, additional support that’s provided to the average person in the form of counselling, etc. also play a significant role. When a person stops smoking, these aids continue steadily to supply him/her with the nicotine that is required to help keep the withdrawal symptoms at bay, and the consumption of nicotine through this route is regulated and gradually reduced. The usage of nicotine replacement therapy to quit smoking is generally is 8 to 12 week long exercise.

Even though an increasing number of smokers continue steadily to battle their nicotine dependency, more and more people continue to smoke their first cigarette. The feeling of euphoria that is often linked to smoking is a result of the nicotine present therein, and this is what keeps the smoker returning for more. The good thing is that awareness in everyone is on the rise, and help to battle nicotine dependency comes in various forms. If you wish to fight nicotine dependency and believe that it is an uphill battle, at least take heart in realizing that there’s a lot of help that you could avail of.