Nicotine is really 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 reported to be more lethal than arsenic, venoms of different snakes, strychnine, etc. Interestingly though, once nicotine reaches the reward pathways in the mind, a surge of dopamine is released, leading to the much spoken about ‘aah’ factor.
The most common means of nicotine finding its way into our system is through cigarette smoke. It is owing to the nicotine present in 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 every year.
Tobacco smoke includes a plethora of chemicals, and nicotine is one of the primary ones. Do know that smokeless tobacco contains nicotine aswell. Nicotine dependency is known as to be amongst the hardest to break, and even whenever a smoker witnesses the damage that nicotine could cause first-hand, smoking can still be quite difficult to give up. While it is the nicotine that keeps a smoker coming back for more, the other constituents within cigarettes result in a considerably higher level of cancer, strokes, and heart & lung diseases in smokers. Nicotine dependency can also result in infertility, complications during pregnancy in addition to 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 of time the physical changes create a new ‘neuro chemical’ system which revolves entirely round the presence of nicotine within the machine. At this stage, the individual is truly 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 bring about discomfort because 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 each year, and is the largest ‘preventable’ cause of early death and disease. The percentage of individuals aged over 14 who smoke everyday in Australia has gone down considerably, from 30.5% in 1988 right down to 16.6% in 2007. Around the world, 10 % 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, there are around 1.3-1.4 billion smokers on the globe, with a large chunk surviving in developing countries. And given the ongoing trends, by 2020 tobacco would take into account approximately 10 million deaths every year.
Facts about Nicotine Dependency:
Nicotine is poisonous, and the reason why that reason 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 often weighed against heroin and cocaine dependency with regard to 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 about 15 years, at about 20 cigarettes per 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, 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’ shows that almost 80% of the smokers have tried quitting at least one time, and within 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. nikotiini pussit One can find numerous brands in terms of these nicotine free cigarettes, and these cigarettes use various herbs/plants as a base. These cigarettes are often used as substitutes to smoking conventional cigarettes, and numerous people use them as nicotine cessation aids. However, due to the various compounds present in 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 get his/her quota of nicotine supply. Different NRT aids include nicotine gums, patches, lozenges, inhalers, and nasal sprays. Using NRT aids is thought to increase the chances of quitting by around 50%, but in order to achieve success, additional support that is provided to the average person by means 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 at bay, and the intake of nicotine through this route is regulated and gradually reduced. Using 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, more and more people continue steadily to smoke their first cigarette. The feeling of euphoria that’s often associated with smoking is a result of the nicotine present therein, and this is what keeps the smoker returning for more. Fortunately that awareness in the general public is increasing, and help to battle nicotine dependency comes in various forms. If you wish to fight nicotine dependency and feel that it is an uphill battle, at the very least take heart in knowing that there’s plenty of help that you can avail of.
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