How nicotine tricks your brain.

[Sunnyside]

This may help someone: This is an explanation of what nicotine does to your Brain In order to quit smoking successfully for the long term, it helps to understand the nature of nicotine addiction and what it takes to break free of it. This addiction is both physical and mental but it is the affect that nicotine has on the brain that is the hardest to beat, why? Let's take a look at how nicotine affects brain chemistry to understand why even years later you will still have situation where your brain will associate with having a cigarette. When a person inhales cigarette smoke, the nicotine in the smoke is rapidly absorbed into the blood and starts affecting the brain within 10 seconds. The result is the release of adrenaline, the "fight or flight" hormone. Physically, adrenaline increases a person's heart rate, blood pressure and restricts blood flow to the heart muscle. When this occurs, the smoker experiences rapid, shallow breathing and the feeling of a racing heartbeat. Adrenaline also instructs the body to dump excess glucose into the bloodstream. Nicotine in the Brain It's in the brain that nicotine does its most work and damage. There are millions of neurons, cells that transfer information throughout the nervous system. Between two neurons is the synapse, across which information is sent. One neuron releases a chemical called a neurotransmitter, which binds to the next neuron in the "chain." This chain sets in motion the body's response to new information. Nicotine binds itself onto a subset of neurons that usually bind the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, blocking the acetylcholine from being able to broadcast its specific, usual messages that concern muscle movement and energy level. When nicotine blocks these receptors, it causes the body to release more acetylcholine in an attempt to find synapses to which it can attach. This extra acetylcholine then signals the brain to release another neurotransmitter, dopamine (which controls the pleasure center of the brain). As the increased levels of acetylcholine make the person feel more alert, the increased level of dopamine makes the person feel relaxed. But these are not the only 2 ingredients in the nicotine-caused brain "cocktail." The high levels of acetylcholine and dopamine signal the release of endorphins and glutamate. Endorphins produce a feeling of happiness while glutamate, which is involved in creating memories, takes a snapshot of the process, associating it with pleasant feelings that encourage further use and, ultimately, addiction. Also as the nicotine level drops in the blood, smokers feel edgy and agitated -- the start of nicotine withdrawal. So, in order to relieve the discomforts, smokers light up another cigarette...and then another..and another. And so it goes -- the vicious cycle of nicotine addiction. One cigarette is never enough, a fact that every smoker knows all too well. Nicotine also inhibits the release of insulin from the pancreas, a hormone that is responsible for removing excess sugar from a person's blood. This leaves the smoker in a slightly hyperglycaemic condition, meaning he has more sugar in his blood than is normal. High blood sugar acts as an appetite suppressant, which may be why smokers think their cigarettes reduce hunger. Recovery from nicotine addiction is a process of gradual release over time. It doesn't happen overnight, but with perseverance, freedom from nicotine addiction is doable, and will pay you back with benefits that go well beyond what you can probably imagine. So as you can see, it's a very clever addiction, that has a very productive way of keeping you hook, but also making you feel that you actually enjoy it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Jenny]

This is a wonderful post!  This explains so well why I would be planning my next cigarette whilst still smoking the first one!

 

You can recover though.  At more than 3 years quit now I can honestly say that I don't even think about smoking anymore.  It's almost hard to believe that I used to be such a hard core smoker who thought it was not possible to quit. 

 

The cravings don't go away over night but it's gets easier with each passing day until eventually...nothing at all.

 

Thanks for posting!

[Ria]

Isn't it strange how overweight smokers believe cigis stop them eating!???

[Ramona]

Thanks for this reality check here.  Monstrous addiction!!!!  Why would I EVER want to go back and start the worst part all over again?  I am grateful to be where I'm at - with seldom thoughts on the darn things

 

Funny though.  Hadn't gone to the Vets with my dog since I quit - - and lo and behold, as I'm driving there, a craving hits.  Hadn't faced that particular trigger without smokes.  Sniped it.

:dirol:

[El Bandito]

Nice post Sunnyside.

 

It's all very clever this addiction, yet ultimately it is beaten by just stopping....nothing more. Tough yet easy, all in one go.

 

Nope.

[Doreensfree]

I never thought I would ever be saying....I hate the tobacco companies....

They are nothing less than greedy murdering b******s....

Finding new ways to keep us hooked....targeting the young in poorer countries....

I find I'm just angry now....it took me so long to see it....

NOPE.....

[Sazerac]

On 9/10/2015 at 8:00 AM, Sunnyside said:

This may help someone: This is an explanation of what nicotine does to your Brain In order to quit smoking successfully for the long term, it helps to understand the nature of nicotine addiction and what it takes to break free of it. This addiction is both physical and mental but it is the affect that nicotine has on the brain that is the hardest to beat, why? Let's take a look at how nicotine affects brain chemistry to understand why even years later you will still have situation where your brain will associate with having a cigarette. When a person inhales cigarette smoke, the nicotine in the smoke is rapidly absorbed into the blood and starts affecting the brain within 10 seconds. The result is the release of adrenaline, the "fight or flight" hormone. Physically, adrenaline increases a person's heart rate, blood pressure and restricts blood flow to the heart muscle. When this occurs, the smoker experiences rapid, shallow breathing and the feeling of a racing heartbeat. Adrenaline also instructs the body to dump excess glucose into the bloodstream. Nicotine in the Brain It's in the brain that nicotine does its most work and damage. There are millions of neurons, cells that transfer information throughout the nervous system. Between two neurons is the synapse, across which information is sent. One neuron releases a chemical called a neurotransmitter, which binds to the next neuron in the "chain." This chain sets in motion the body's response to new information. Nicotine binds itself onto a subset of neurons that usually bind the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, blocking the acetylcholine from being able to broadcast its specific, usual messages that concern muscle movement and energy level. When nicotine blocks these receptors, it causes the body to release more acetylcholine in an attempt to find synapses to which it can attach. This extra acetylcholine then signals the brain to release another neurotransmitter, dopamine (which controls the pleasure center of the brain). As the increased levels of acetylcholine make the person feel more alert, the increased level of dopamine makes the person feel relaxed. But these are not the only 2 ingredients in the nicotine-caused brain "cocktail." The high levels of acetylcholine and dopamine signal the release of endorphins and glutamate. Endorphins produce a feeling of happiness while glutamate, which is involved in creating memories, takes a snapshot of the process, associating it with pleasant feelings that encourage further use and, ultimately, addiction. Also as the nicotine level drops in the blood, smokers feel edgy and agitated -- the start of nicotine withdrawal. So, in order to relieve the discomforts, smokers light up another cigarette...and then another..and another. And so it goes -- the vicious cycle of nicotine addiction. One cigarette is never enough, a fact that every smoker knows all too well. Nicotine also inhibits the release of insulin from the pancreas, a hormone that is responsible for removing excess sugar from a person's blood. This leaves the smoker in a slightly hyperglycaemic condition, meaning he has more sugar in his blood than is normal. High blood sugar acts as an appetite suppressant, which may be why smokers think their cigarettes reduce hunger. Recovery from nicotine addiction is a process of gradual release over time. It doesn't happen overnight, but with perseverance, freedom from nicotine addiction is doable, and will pay you back with benefits that go well beyond what you can probably imagine. So as you can see, it's a very clever addiction, that has a very productive way of keeping you hook, but also making you feel that you actually enjoy it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a great post from Sunnyside and one of my favorite graphics about your brain on cigarettes.