Nicotine Annotated Bibliography

Pregnancy is a joyful time for most families because that means the mother is bringing a new member into the world who will be welcomed into the family. A mother holding her newborn healthy baby in her arms for the first time makes her feel a sense of pride. This is because she has followed all of her doctor’s instructions and listened to his advice on how to keep herself healthy, and how to deliver a healthy baby after her nine months are up. But what if the new mom to be did not listen to the doctor’s advice? What if she decided to smoke during her pregnancy because she assumed it would not hurt the baby? What health problems or birth defects would the baby be challenged with when it was born? Women who smoke during their pregnancies on

     In the world today, Nicotine is one of the most frequently used addictive drugs. The impact it has on society is like no other. It is one of more than 4,000 chemicals found in the smoke of tobacco products such as cigarettes, cigars, and pipes. This addictive drug is the primary component in tobacco that acts on the brain.

Smoking tobacco is well known to assist the body with creating cancer cells. Also loss of blood circulation leading to gangrene, hair loss, yellowing of fingernails and bad breath are only some of the health risks associated with first person smoking. These health risks can also apply to second hand smokers which

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

The consumption of cigarettes negatively impact the health of smokers and nonsmokers exposed. In this section we will focus in the negative heath effects of consumption in smokers. The consequences of tobacco consumption to the health appeared in the early twentieth century. there are published thousands of articles and reviews of this theme and show us that smoking is related with alterations in all organs and systems.

Nicotine is a psychoactive drug that messes with the chemical makeup of a smoker’s brain resulting in addiction. Nicotine is considered the main addictive component in tobacco products that inspires the continued usage. The rapidity at which nicotine is absorbed into the reward area of the mesolimbic system causes addiction (Bodie, 2014, pg. 318) where is activates the dopamine system generating pleasing effects on mood and behavior (De Biasi and Dani, 2011). The dopamine that is released within the brain then speeds up the break down process of the chemical monoamine oxide β. Monoamine oxide β supports the rapid break down of dopamine (Doweiko, 2012, pg. 221). Dopamine is main element for the false feelings of reward associated with smoking a cigarette (Benowitz, 2009). Nicotine binds to the acetylcholine receptors in the brain, which is responsible for the release of endorphins and epinephrine as a smoker draws a lung full of smoke from a cigarette. Endorphins and epinephrine are associated to the calming affects that many smokers claim to feel during times of stress, as well as being linked to the reduction of fatigue, and increased alertness (Doweiko, 2012, pg. 221-222). The gratifying feelings that are associated with smoking a cigarette or through the use of other tobacco products, combined with the rewarding impressions caused by nicotine are considered possible causes of nicotine dependence and

Once nicotine is in the blood stream it flows almost immediately to the brain. The carbon monoxide that is inhaled through the use of a cigarette reduces the amount of oxygen the blood can carry. The reduced amount of oxygen and the effects of nicotine delivered to the brain cause an imbalance of the amount of oxygen that is demanded and the amount of oxygen supplied. As a result of a reduced amount of oxygen in the blood stream the heart rate increases, because the heart has to increase the flow of blood to deliver the amount of oxygen that is required throughout the body. The body’s blood pressure also increases when nicotine is introduced into the body. Nicotine stimulates the adrenal gland which releases adrenalin and noradrenalin. The release of these hormones can have numerous effects on the body’s vascular system and cause an increase in blood pressure.

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 not only affects the brain but it affects the user’s whole body. Nicotine makes the heart work harder to pump blood this extra stress on the heart can lead to high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke. Smoking can damage the lungs by blocking the airways and can lead to lung cancer and other repository diseases. Smoking not only harms the inside of your body but also damages your skin causing wrinkles, it

There have been many studies, experiments, and research on the effects that smoking tobacco has on a person’s body. It is well known that cigarettes have thousands of chemicals in them and hundreds of toxins. A lot of these chemicals are known to cause cancer, yet people still choose to smoke cigarettes. A huge reason that people find it hard to back away from smoking cigarettes is because of the nicotine that it contains. It is highly addictive and will cause withdrawal symptoms if regular smokers go without nicotine that they get from smoking. Withdrawal from nicotine is a lot like withdrawal from other drugs. It can cause headaches and nausea, but most of all, smokers will have the overwhelming desire for more tobacco.

The brain is a vital part of the human body, it is how humans function and process so when smoking it causes the brain to react differently. Nicotine is said to be as addictive as heroin and it is hard to beat becauses it changes the brain drastically. The brain develops extra nicotine receptors to accommodate the large doses of nicotine from tobacco. When the brain stops getting the nicotine it’s used to, they result in nicotine withdrawal (18 Ways Smoking Affects Your Health). People may feel anxious, irritable, and have high cravings for nicotine. The brain is not the only thing that is affected while using these products, the head and face are included as well. Many smokers experience hearing loss, blindness and night vision, and a “smoker’s

Cohen, E. L., Shumate, M. D., & Gold, A. (2007). Original: anti-smoking media campaign messages: theory and practice. Health Communication, 22(2), 91-102.

Nicotine is a powerful substance in controlling brain function. It interacts with specific receptors in brain tissue, and initiates metabolic and electrical activity in the brain.

Smoking is not just a bad habit, but also a complex addiction. Experts believe that nicotine exerts its powerful addictive effects by

This paper discusses the long-term effects of using nicotine effects on brain social implications and gives details about death rates among people who use tobacco. According to research, nicotine produces mood-altering effects in a person’s brain which are temporally pleasing.