The Brain's Response To Nicotine

The Brain's Response to Nicotine
Hi, my name's Sara Bellum. Welcome to my magazine series exploring the brain's response to
drugs. In this issue, we'll investigate the fascinating facts about nicotine. Some of this
information was only recently discovered by leading scientists.
For centuries, people have chewed and smoked tobacco, which comes from the plant nicotiana
tabacum. The reason tobacco is used by so many people is because it contains a powerful
drug known as nicotine.
When tobacco is smoked, nicotine is absorbed by the lungs and quickly moved into the
bloodstream, where it is circulated throughout the brain. All of this happens very rapidly. In
fact, nicotine reaches the brain within 8 seconds after someone inhales tobacco smoke.
Nicotine can also enter the bloodstream through the mucous membranes that line the mouth
(if tobacco is chewed) or nose (if snuff is used), and even through the skin.
Nicotine affects the entire body. Nicotine acts directly on the heart to change heart rate and
blood pressure. It also acts on the nerves that control respiration to change breathing
patterns. In high concentrations, nicotine is deadly, in fact one drop of purified nicotine on the
tongue will kill a person. It's so lethal that it has been used as a pesticide for centuries.
So why do people smoke? Because nicotine acts in the brain where it can stimulate feelings of
pleasure.
How Does Nicotine Act in the Brain?
Your brain is made up of billions of nerve cells. They communicate by releasing chemical
messengers called neurotransmitters. Each neurotransmitter is like a key that fits into a
special "lock," called a receptor, located on the surface of nerve cells. When a
neurotransmitter finds its receptor, it activates the receptor's nerve cell.
The nicotine molecule is shaped like a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine. Acetylcholine and
its receptors are involved in many functions, including muscle movement, breathing, heart
rate, learning, and memory. They also cause the release of other neurotransmitters and
hormones that affect your mood, appetite, memory, and more. When nicotine gets into the
brain, it attaches to acetylcholine receptors and mimics the actions of acetylcholine.
Nicotine also activates areas of the brain that are involved in producing feelings of pleasure
and reward. Recently, scientists discovered that nicotine raises the levels of a
neurotransmitter called dopamine in the parts of the brain that produce feelings of pleasure
and reward. Dopamine, which is sometimes called the pleasure molecule, is the same
neurotransmitter that is involved in addictions to other drugs such as cocaine and heroin.
Researchers now believe that this change in dopamine may play a key role in all addictions.
This may help explain why it is so hard for people to stop
Easy to Start, Hard to Quit
Did you know that nicotine is as addictive as heroin or cocaine? If someone uses nicotine
again and again, such as by smoking cigarettes or cigars or chewing tobacco, his or her body
develops a tolerance for it. When someone develops tolerance, he or she needs more drug to
get the same effect. Eventually, a person can become addicted. Once a person becomes
addicted, it is extremely difficult to quit. People who start smoking before the age of 21 have
the hardest time quitting, and fewer than 1 in 10 people who try to quit smoking succeed.
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When nicotine addicts stop smoking they may suffer from restlessness, hunger, depression,
headaches, and other uncomfortable feelings. These are called "withdrawal symptoms"
because they happen when nicotine is withdrawn from the body.
America's Leading Preventable Killer
Withdrawal may be bad, but long-term smoking can be much worse. It raises your blood
pressure, dulls your senses of smell and taste, reduces your stamina, and wrinkles your skin.
More dangerously, long-term smoking can lead to fatal heart attacks, strokes, emphysema,
and cancer.
You may be surprised to learn that tobacco use causes far more illnesses and death than all
other addicting drugs combined. One out every six deaths in the United States is a result of
smoking.
But even when faced with risk of death, many people keep using tobacco because they are so
addicted to nicotine. Believe it or not, half of the smokers who have heart attacks keep
smoking, even though their doctor warns them to stop. That's a strong addiction!
Smokeless tobacco also has harmful effects. Chewing tobacco can cause damage to gum
tissue and even loss of teeth. It also reduces a person's ability to taste and smell. Most
importantly, smokeless tobacco contains cancer causing-chemicals that can cause cancers of
the mouth, pharynx, larynx, and esophagus. This can even happen in very young users of
chewing tobacco. In fact, most people who develop these cancers were users of chewing
tobacco.
Got A Match?
The brain's best defense against nicotine is to think hard before using it. Start by trying to
match the correct percentages to the statements located below.
1. Percentage of smokers who start smoking in their teens:
2. Percentage of smokers age 17 or less who say they regret starting:
3. Percentage of youth smokers who will continue smoking and die early from a smoking-
related disease:
A. About 30%
B. 80% - 90%
C. 70%
Answers:
1. Percentage of smokers who start smoking in their teens:

B. 80% - 90%
2. Percentage of smokers age 17 or less who say they regret starting:

C. 70%
3. Percentage of youth smokers who will continue smoking and die early from a smoking-
related disease:
A. About 30%

The Search Continues
The truth is, there's still a whole lot that scientists don't know about nicotine's effects on the
brain. Maybe someday you'll make the next big discovery.
Until then, join me - Sara Bellum - in the other magazines in my series as we explore how
drugs affect the brain and nervous system.
For printed copies of this publication contact:
National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information

P.O. Box 2345
Rockville, MD 20847
1-800-729-6686
Mind Over Matter is produced by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of
Health. These materials are in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission.
Citation of the source is appreciated. NIH Publication No. 03-4248. Printed 1998, Reprinted
2000, 2003.

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The Brain's Response to Nicotine

How Does Nicotine Act in the Brain?

Easy to Start, Hard to Quit

www.CE-credit.com - Helping Professionals Help Others

America's Leading Preventable Killer

1. Percentage of smokers who start smoking in their teens:

2. Percentage of smokers age 17 or less who say they regret starting:

1. Percentage of smokers who start smoking in their teens:

2. Percentage of smokers age 17 or less who say they regret starting:

www.CE-credit.com - Helping Professionals Help Others

For printed copies of this publication contact:

National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information

www.CE-credit.com - Helping Professionals Help Others

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