Nicotine Addiction
Nicotine is the chemical in cigarettes that makes them addictive. Higher levels of nicotine in a cigarette can make it harder to quit smoking. A report by the Massachusetts Department of Health found that the amount of nicotine in cigarettes has steadily increased over the last 6 years. Higher nicotine levels were found in all cigarette categories, including 'light" brands. Massachusetts is one of several states that require tobacco manufacturers to submit yearly reports regarding cigarettes.
- Boost mood and relieve minor depression
- Suppress little fits of anger
- Enhance concentration and short-term memory
- Produce a modest sense of well-being
Most smokers have a special fondness for the first cigarette of the day because of the way brain cells respond to the day's first nicotine rush. Nicotine, particularly taken in the first few cigarettes of the day, increases the activity of dopamine, a chemical in the brain that elicits pleasurable sensations, a feeling similar to achieving a reward.
Over the course of a day, however, the nerve cells become desensitized to nicotine. Smoking becomes less pleasurable, and smokers may be likely to increase their intake to get their "reward." A smoker develops tolerance to these effects very quickly and requires increasingly higher levels of nicotine.
A smoker may "forget" their craving for nicotine if a part of the brain called the insula becomes damaged. A 2007 study published in the journal Science found that smokers with brain damage to this area were 136 times more likely to forget their addiction to nicotine. The findings may one day lead to new drugs that better help a person quit.
Smokeless Tobacco
Smokeless tobacco, also called spit tobacco, includes chewing tobacco (dip and chew), tobacco powder (snuff), as well as flavored tobacco lozenges. These products also contain nicotine. There are two forms of spit tobacco.
These products allow tobacco to be absorbed by the digestive system or through mucous membranes. Smokeless tobacco contains at least 28 cancer-causing substances. Smokeless tobacco is not a safe substitute for smoking cigarettes or cigars. According to the National Institutes of Health, chewing on an average-size piece of chewing tobacco for 30 minutes can deliver as much nicotine as smoking three cigarettes.
Although research is inconsistent, some evidence suggests that smokeless tobacco produces a 50-fold increase in the risk of oral cancer, gingivitis, and tooth loss.
Twenty Useful Tips To Help You Quit Smoking QualityBooks.com
1. Taking 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda 3 times a day will help you quit smoking. The soda neutralizes the body acids, retains nicotine in the blood, and thus reduces the desire for tobacco.
2. Eat plenty of fresh lemons and lemon juice to reduce your desire for cigarettes. Eating lots of salads and other fruits will also help. Avoid meat and alcohol.
3. To avoid irritability: take 1 tryptophan (667 mg.) tablet 3 times a day, plus 1 Vitamin B complex (100 mg., time release) with your evening meal.
4. Before breakfast, take 1/2 teaspoon each of Rochelle Salts and Cream of Tartar.
5. Try chewing Ginseng Root; swallow the juice.
6. Dont keep cigarettes by your bed. When you wake up, breathe deeply and brush your teeth right away.
7. Eliminate situations in which you normally smoke; for example, give up one coffee break each day. Exercise or go for a walk instead. After dinner, brush your teeth immediately or go for a brisk walk.
8. Dont take your cigarettes to work or anywhere else.
9. Always sit beside non-smokers in public situations such as meetings.
10. Always put away your cigarettes, lighter and ashtray so that getting them will require an effort.
11. Change your brand of cigarette often. Each week smoke a brand with a lower nicotine and tar content.
12. Switch to a brand of cigarette you dont like; change to filter if you prefer non-filter, menthol if you prefer regular.
13. Cut back on drinks which encourage your smoking habits; for example, eliminate lunchtime coffee.
14. Make a point of having your first cigarette a bit later each day. Stop smoking a little earlier each night.
15. Alternate between giving up a morning, afternoon and evening cigarette.
16. Avoid smoking in certain habitual places, for example, on the telephone, while watching TV or sitting with the newspaper.
17. Make a list of the reasons you want to quit and keep it with you all the time; whenever you feel the urge, read your list.
18. Always choose seats in No Smoking sections of restaurants, trains and other public places.
19. Initiate a 3-day program, each day smoking 1/2 of what you smoked the day before.
20. Limit your smoking to alternate hours; the next day or the next week increase your no-smoking periods to 1-1/2 hours; then increase them to 2 hours, etc., until you have stopped altogether.
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