Nicotine, my dear friend!

In cigarettes, we find a certain amount of nicotine mainly responsible for our addiction. But what is nicotine?

Nicotine is a toxin naturally present in tobacco, it is responsible for withdrawal and addiction syndromes. This substance acts directly on our nervous system in order to provoke a powerful dependency. It is called a drug because it subtly tightens its grip on our body and mind, acting as an anxiolytic, appetite suppressant, stimulant and improving our memory capacity:

Indeed, nicotine increases abnormally the production of dopamine (molecule that transmits information between neurons) thus placing us in a state of euphoria but when the dopamine level decreases, we find ourselves in this state of lack, pushing us to smoke again:

There are many misconceptions about the dangers of this molecule, but what is it really? In itself, nicotine presents a low risk and is not carcinogenic. Indeed, it is tar that causes cancer, carbon dioxide that causes heart attack and nicotine that leads us to addiction.

It is important to know that nicotine remains in our body for a little over two hours before it disappears. There is indeed an “initial” peak when smoking, during which the nicotine concentration will continue to increase until the cigarette is completely burned (5-7 minutes). Then, this concentration will gradually decrease and after two hours, 50% of the initial peak will still be present in the blood. It is this short duration that also forces us to recharge frequently.

Addiction to nicotine is all the more pronounced when a smoker is young. This is why the tobacco industry is particularly targeted at adolescents and young adults.

To summarize, nicotine is not dangerous in itself but at high doses, nicotine presents a real danger to the smoker. Its main effect is therefore to make the smoker totally addictive, addictive, to the cigarette. Nicotine is highly addictive only when inhaled during the burning of tobacco.

Tobacco addiction is a real scourge that has caused 100 million deaths in the 20th century and will cause 1 billion in the 21st century if nothing is done to stop it. These figures represent more deaths than any war has ever done! Nicotine is therefore responsible for our addiction and yet it continues to be sold easily in pharmacies.

Author: Vaptio