Nicotine Addiction: The Effects On The Body Essay

1). Another study shows that nicotine stimulates the adrenal medulla to secrete hormones such as epinephrine and norepinephrine which are responsible for the increase in the pulsation rate (George, "Effects of smoking on cardiovascular function: the role of nicotine and carbon monoxide", 2015, pp. 278-280).

So, it is perfectly rational to call smoking an “addiction” in my policy above. The main topic of 1988 US Surgeon General’s Report was if tobacco was addictive. It stated three main conclusions. First, it said that cigarettes and other forms of tobacco are addictive. Second, it stated that the reason they are addictive is because of the nicotine found in them. Thirdly, it stated that this addictiveness is much like heroin or cocaine. Prior to this report and since then there have been other studies and experiments stating the addictiveness of tobacco and the effects of nicotine on the body. It is known that nicotine increases the levels of dopamine in the brain and causes a burst of adrenaline. This burst of adrenaline is pleasurable and is what is known as the “rush” or “kick” from smoking. DeNoble and Mele figured out that rats would rather have nicotine than food and water once they were addicted. Phillip Morris stopped them from publishing their findings in 1983. In 1995, Stoleman and Jarvis did a study on nicotine’s addictiveness and found that there are many different withdrawal symptoms people go through when they are deprived of nicotine. They also found that this withdrawal is only relieved by a nicotine and not a smoking placebo. This again furthers the fact that smoking is addictive. Once a person starts smoking it quickly becomes an

As reported by Heather’s, Nicotine contains a large amount of toxic substance which can lead to several causes and effects to health. The substances in nicotine effects on the brain and its addicted. When a person smokes, the nicotine substance travels to the brain within 10 seconds and changes the function of the brain. “Blood that enters the lungs to picks up oxygen also pickup something else – the nicotine”. It also rises the blood pressure by five to ten points and heart rate by ten to twenty beats per minute. However, nicotine also performs as a sense of feeling of pleasure. Nicotine reaches to brain within a speedy rate and disperses soon conversely, its increases use of cigarettes.

In 1988, the Ministry of Health in the United States defined the nicotine as an addictive substance. Cigarettes and other derivatives substances generate tobacco dependence. The addictive mechanisms are similar to the addiction mechanisms to drugs such as cocaine and heroin. Cigarettes are highly efficient at delivering nicotine and other addictive substances. The average smoker takes in 1 to 2 mg of nicotine per cigarette each time they inhale. Nicotine reaches the brain within 10 seconds which contributes to its great power of addiction.

Throughout life, a person is faced with large and small obstacles. Some don't require a minimum effort; however others demand the strength of will and a maximum effort. One obstacle is nicotine addiction. Some consider it as a disease, a bad habit or a little weakness. Much has been said about smoking, but it is still a major problem in the United States. This habit has joined men and women and has received widespread popularity among children and adolescents. Nicotine addiction has a negative impact on society as a whole, as well as, on the life of an individual's health.

Smoking is the single highest cause of preventable death in America and puts users at significantly greater risk for disease compared to the rest of the population. Tobacco use costs the U.S. more than 289 billion dollars annually in medical expenses and lost productivity (Surgeon General, 2014). The problems associated with smoking are due in part to its addictiveness. Nicotine is the addictive substance found in tobacco and its chemical dependence is as strong as heroin, cocaine, or alcohol (CDC, 2014). Getting all smokers to quit entirely is not realistic due to nicotine’s addictive characteristics.

Tobacco is a nervous system stimulant that triggers complex biochemical and neurotransmitter disruptions. It elevates heart rate and blood pressure, constricts blood vessels, irritates lung tissue, and diminishes your ability to taste and smell (Health).

Nicotine affects nearly all components of the endocrine and neuroendocrine systems, including catecholamines, serotonin, corticosteroids and pituitary hormones.

It is the most common addiction throughout the world with 1.1 trillion people smoking currently, consisting about a third of the population over 15 years old. While nicotine is the addictive substance in the tobacco that causes addiction, tobacco will increase health risks of heart attack and vascular diseases. Nicotine dependency is a complex brain disease, and we need to start thinking of it as such. New ways of ingesting this substance have been created, that try to lure and appeal to demographic, particularly younger, to consume nicotine. Regardless of how many years someone has smoked, stopping at any point will valuable and improve your quality of life. Changing the public’s view on addiction is a subject of importance, so many of others can view this as a brain disease more than a personal decision. To fight this addiction, you have to rewire your behaviors in your brain and have a drive to overcome this horrific addiction. The brain can luckily keep changing and be trained to stop cravings with a multitude of different strategies. Anyone can be affected by addiction, we need start treating addicts with evidence-based practices rather than jailing them. Through more education and laws enforced, we can only hope that the number of tobacco users can decrease more and everyone can learn to live a healthier, full life without addiction and the painful diseases that derive from

Most cigarettes have eight to nine mg of nicotine, though only one mg is transferred to the smoker. Nicotine increases the heart rate, raises the blood pressure and causes blood clotting to the smoker. The most important fact about nicotine is that it has no medical value. Other drugs like marijuana, heroine, and cocaine have no medical value as well but for some reason, cigarettes are legal in the US. An interesting fact that many people do not know is that nicotine, the addicting drug in cigarettes, is more addicting then marijuana, heroine, and cocaine. There has not been one reported death due to marijuana. In 1988, the U.S. Surgeon General reported that nicotine is just as addictive as heroin and cocaine. A "hit" of nicotine reaches the brain in seven seconds, twice as fast as heroin injected into the vein. And still the cigarette is still legal.

     Nicotine has many various effects on the body. In small doses nicotine can serves as a stimulant, entering the bloodstream and promoting the flow of adrenaline, a stimulating hormone. It also raises the blood pressure and reduces the appetite, and it may cause nausea and vomiting.

Additionally, nicotine tightens the blood vessels which slows down blood flow. The health effects of smoking are frightfully damaging and in many cases, deadly. The chemicals in tobacco smoke are breathed in into the lungs and then travel throughout the body.

A conversation is normally started as a smoker asks for a light or a cigarette. In addition, it is also difficult for a person to quit his/her friends whom they smoke together. Some of the long-term effects of smoking include sleep disorders irritability, lack of concentration severe headaches and anxiety. Pure nicotine is said to be extremely poisonous and it can cause death. Currently, use of nicotine is said to be causing the highest number of deaths in the United States. It causes

Another cardiovascular malfunction that cigarette smoking may cause are strokes. A stroke is damage to the brain caused by leakage from a ruptured blood vessel or an interruption in blood supply. Nicotine and carbon monoxide in cigarette smoke affect the adhesives of blood platelets, the main clotting factor in blood. This can cause blood vessels to harden and form blood clots that can flow to the brain, a major cause of strokes. Nicotine can also cause the blood vessels to constrict. When a smokers arteries become too constricted,

Smoking increases the risk of suffering from heart diseases, stroke, other lung diseases and other respiratory illnesses. The body develops horrific reactions to the daily onslaught of smoking. It damages the blood vessels in the legs and arms for example, which lead to restricted circulation and even amputation of the limbs. Also, a smoker addict will eventually start getting eye irritations (which leads to blindness), foul smelling hair, hair loss and even start developing a loss of smell. All of these reactions are due to the dangerous chemicals cigarettes contain.