Nicotine is really a toxin found in the tobacco plant, and its main function is to serve as deterrent with regards to insects attempting to eat the plant. Nikotiinipussit 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 spoken about ‘aah’ factor.

The most common method of nicotine finding its way into our system is through cigarette smoke. It is due to the nicotine within the cigarette that the act of smoking seems pleasurable. And nicotine is undoubtedly the prevailing concern that that the cigarette industry is growing at a reliable pace. However, smoking counts as a major preventable reason behind 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 still be quite difficult to give up. While it is the nicotine that keeps a smoker returning for more, the other constituents present in cigarettes result in a considerably higher rate of cancer, strokes, and heart & lung diseases in smokers. Nicotine dependency may also result in infertility, complications during pregnancy in addition to complications in a newborn baby’s health.

The Effects of Nicotine:

Not merely 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 of time the physical changes build a new ‘neuro chemical’ system which revolves entirely around the presence of nicotine within the machine. At this stage, the average person is truly addicted. Attempts to stop using nicotine at this time or later would almost definitely result in 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 lack of nicotine as a cause for concern.

Statistics:

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

Factual statements about Nicotine Dependency:

Nicotine is poisonous, and the reason that reason a smoker will not immediately die is because of the minuscule levels of nicotine within each cigarette.
Nicotine is highly addictive, and nicotine dependency is frequently weighed against heroin and cocaine dependency regarding difficulty to quit.
Relapses are very common in efforts to give up smoking.
Apart from nicotine, cigarettes have over 4,000 different chemicals; a lot 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 span would decrease by around 7 to 8 years (at about 7 to 8 minutes per cigarette).
Each month, tobacco companies in Australia lose around 12,000 customers. While around 10,000 have the ability to quit, almost all 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 once, and in 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 can find many 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 that they too could be carcinogenic.

Nicotine Replacement Therapy:

Nicotine replacement therapy identifies 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 use of NRT aids is said to increase the chances of quitting by around 50%, however in order to achieve success, additional support that is provided to the individual in the form of counselling, etc. also play a significant role. When a person stops smoking, these aids continue to supply him/her with the nicotine that is required to help keep the withdrawal symptoms away, and the intake of nicotine through this route is regulated and gradually reduced. The application of nicotine replacement therapy to quit smoking is generally is 8 to 12 week long exercise.

Even though a growing number of smokers continue steadily to battle their nicotine dependency, more and more people continue steadily to smoke their first cigarette. The feeling of euphoria that’s often associated with smoking is because the nicotine present therein, and this is what keeps the smoker coming back for more. Fortunately that awareness in the general public is on the rise, and help to battle nicotine dependency comes in various forms. So if you desire to fight nicotine dependency and believe that it really is an uphill battle, at least take heart in knowing that there’s a lot of help that one could avail of.