What Is Nicotine | How Do You Know If Your Blood Has Nicotine
Nicotine is a highly addictive substance and its usage has severe negative effects on health of an individual
. Nicotine usage is associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) like bronchitis and emphysema and cancer of lungs, larynx, oral cavity, esophagus, pharynx etc. Smoking cigarettes or chewing tobacco releases large amount of nicotine in body that leads to further health ailments.
How Nicotine Acts in the Brain
To affect the brain, a drug must have physical properties that permit it to pass through the blood brain barrier (the barrier that helps protect the brain from foreign substances).The nicotine molecule has ideal physical features that allow it to penetrate the brain easily. When nicotine is inhaled into the lungs, the arterial blood stream picks it up and carries it to the brain within 10 seconds.
Once in the brain, nicotine molecules work like keys opening locks. The locks are called "receptors" and are located on nerve cells of the brain and connect it to muscle tissues and the various organs of the body. Drugs that act as keys are called "transmitters" since they help to send information from one part of the body to another.
Receptors located on the receiving end (dendrites) of the nerve cell transmit information by an electric impulse through the axon. At the end of the axon terminal a small amount of the body's own chemical transmitter (for instance, adrenaline) is released. The transmitter crosses the gap (synaptic cleft) where it has its effect on the target organ; the target may be another nerve cell which misfired, an organ such as the heart which is speeded up, or muscle which is stimulated.
Nicotine has complicated actions because the receptors activated by it are located throughout the body. In fact, much of the mapping of the nervous system was done by placing nicotine at various places and charting the effects. This is much like mapping hidden currents in a lake and river system by placing dyes in the water and tracing their course.
Places that were activated by nicotine were called nicotinic receptors. Some of these receptors are located on the adrenal gland. Activation of them results in the release of adrenaline and noradrenalin into the body. These chemicals increase heart rate and blood pressure, heighten arousal, and cause feelings of excitement. Cocaine also results in heightened adrenal activity and has effects on the brain similar to those of nicotine.
A drug that activates a receptor is called an "agonist". Other substances that share some of the critical physical properties of the agonist may substitute for the agonist - much as a master key can substitute for a particular key. For instance, codeine, morphine, and heroin can all substitute for one another. It merely requires adjustment of the dose to get the same effect.
Nicotine acts by substituting for the body's own chemical (acetylcholine) at nicotinic receptors. Lobe line, contained in some over-the-counter aids to help stop smoking, partially substitutes for nicotine. Nicotine in the form of newly marketed chewing-gum (Nicolette) substitutes very well for nicotine in tobacco smoke. Amphetamine appears to substitute for some of nicotine's effects. Both drugs increase the activity of adrenaline and noradrenalin.
A drug that blocks the effect of an agonist drug is called an antagonist. Some drugs act as antagonists by stimulating other systems (functional antagonists). For instance, giving coffee to a person who is intoxicated by alcohol produces the well-known "wide awake drunk" phenomenon. Other drugs act as antagonists by occupying the receptor without having any effects of their own, thus preventing the agonist drug from working (competitive antagonists). This is like filling a keyhole with wax, thus preventing the key from entering. An antagonist for nicotine is called mecamylamine. Mecamylamine and similar drugs (ganglion blockers) are now used to treat patients with high blood pressure. They are currently being tested as a possible help in stopping smoking since they block the pleasurable effects of nicotine.
Here are some reasons to chose a healthier, herbal chewing gum rather than nicotine gum:
Some of the most common side affects from chewing nicotine gum include insomnia (unable to sleep), strange dreams (a common symptom of stopping smoking), diarrhea, dry mouth, muscle and joint pains, anxiety, sweating or extreme irritation of the mouth. It is not as common to have server side effects such as breathing problems or a tight chest though they do happen.
Chewing nicotine gum increases heart rate and blood pressure. Not to the same degree as actually smoking a cigarette but in rare cases heart attacks have been related to chewing the gum. This is usually cased when the patient has been smoking in addition to chewing the gum thus causing a nicotine overdose.
Some users of nicotine gum experience a sore throat especially in those who suffer with asthma and can increase the risk of bronchitis. It is commonly complained that users suffer from jaw pain or a tooth disorder. Dry mouth only occurs in around 6 percent of all users of the gum.
Stomach problems such as diarrhea, nausea, flatulence and stomatitis are caused by chewing nicotine gum. Increases salivation and hiccups are also a common problem. Extreme cases cause heart burn.
by: bud10
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