Nicotine is almost universally believed to be the major factor that motivates smoking and impedes cessation. Authorities such as the Surgeon General of the USA and the Royal College of Physicians in the UK have declared that nicotine is as addictive as heroin and cocaine.
This book is a critique of the nicotine addiction hypothesis, based on a critical review of the research literature that purports to prove that nicotine is as addictive drug. The review is based on a re-examination of more than 700 articles and books on this subject, including animal and human experimental studies, effects of `nicotine replacement therapies', and many other relevant sources.
This review concludes that on present evidence, there is every reason to reject the generally accepted theory that nicotine has a major role in cigarette smoking. A critical examination of the criteria for drug addiction demonstrates that none of these criteria is met by nicotine, and that it is much more likely that nicotine in fact limits rather than facilitates smoking.
At the Scottish COVID inquiry it was revealled care home residents' life-long habit of smoking cigarettes was abruptly stopped during lockdown (along with coffee consumption). ''COVID'' symptoms thereafter? No one has picked up on this. Apart from me of course. ;-)
Yes, a ''viable method'' but not without consequence many of which could be 'COVID' was my point. It's not only sad to see the neglect etc in care homes i despair even more at the lack of concern shown for these testimonies and that the majority of the 'alt' media and 'medical freedom community' really don't give a damn!
I’ve tried many times over many years and I have failed… And I think one of the challenges are that I smoke a cigarette that only has 0.3 mg of nicotine. I’m extremely sensitive to nicotine. I’ve tried the low heat cigarettes, and they are 5 mg each. Within 10 minutes I’ve got jitters, Heart palpitations, feeling nervous and anxious. I’ve tried nicotine chewing gum is the same damn thing. Also with the patches. They are all do way too high for those of us who are smokers that already have a low-dose of nicotine and only smoke barely a half a pack of a day. Now the cigarettes that I use are 0.3 mg of nicotine per cigarette, and with high heat that burns it to where you only get 0.15 mg.
Now my thoughts are on these vapes/low heat cigarettes? They’ve calculated the level of nicotine required to sustain a heavy addiction.
And I think that is 5 mg because it’s so curious you can only get those products in 5 mg. Not lower than what I use, and not higher either.
And it’s the same thing with the nicotine gums and the patches…
I don’t really think they’re designed to help us, I think they’re designed to keep us addicted. Because if they really were designed to get you to quit? They would come in much smaller doses. Even though cigarettes that have an upwards of 2 mg for cigarette, when they burn, you only get 1 mg of nicotine.
So the alleged “quitting “companies… The ones that have patches and gums and all sort of other nicotine delivery systems to get you off of cigarettes? There are part of the problem. They use such a high dose they keep you hooked and addicted.
I totally agree about the quit smoking companies! Meant to keep you addicted. On the smallest dose, the only thing you can do is cut back number per day so there's big peaks and valleys.
Totally agree and I wish I could do that. I tried the fake Nicorette cigarettes, too strong. After several puffs, I start to feel sick. Same with gum, the patches.
Oh my God, the patches are the worst!
Pack usually taste around three days for me to consume. Toast like I’m smoking around seven cigarettes a day. When I smoke all I smoke a half a cigarette, maybe a third. I don’t smoke in my car, never smoked in my house, I’m on long trip. I can go several hours without a cigarette. It’s really super lightweight smoker since it’s so difficult to quit.
I’ve had friends who spoke a lot more, some smoking one to two packs a day. I don’t see how anyone has the time to smoke 40 cigarettes a day but I digress… They were able to quit cold turkey. And I think that’s because they were smoking way too much, and they got fed up
Thank you for sharing your insight and personal experience with me. NRT have several disadvantages as you have mentioned above. And I agree that they are not designed to help you quit because they follow the linear tapering method.
Have you tried the nasal spray which delivers 1 mg of nicotine/ one spray in each nostril.
On a parallel note, you must have multiple reasons to want to quit as you have tried several options to quit already. You are quiet invested in this and your perseverance is a key strength here.
I'm curious, if the NRT did not work for you, what other approach do you feel might work for you, especially that your intake of nicotine is very low?
I see it differently… The small amount of nicotine is managing my sanity :-) I just need a little boost every now and then and I’ve tackled many other things up until this point I’ve been focused on tapering off other things like prescription medication, coffee. And I feel much better, so this is the last one and eventually I will get to it. I didn’t know about the nasal spray, I need to see if it’s available in my country.
Exactly! I think about that as well. I currently smoke American spirits, so there are no additives. I would switch to the organic version, but I don’t know how to roll, and I think it has higher nicotine than what I use now.
Great advice with the hyperbolic tapering method vs. linear. The process is good for other drugs as well.
A Critique of Nicotine Addiction
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/b111440
Nicotine is almost universally believed to be the major factor that motivates smoking and impedes cessation. Authorities such as the Surgeon General of the USA and the Royal College of Physicians in the UK have declared that nicotine is as addictive as heroin and cocaine.
This book is a critique of the nicotine addiction hypothesis, based on a critical review of the research literature that purports to prove that nicotine is as addictive drug. The review is based on a re-examination of more than 700 articles and books on this subject, including animal and human experimental studies, effects of `nicotine replacement therapies', and many other relevant sources.
This review concludes that on present evidence, there is every reason to reject the generally accepted theory that nicotine has a major role in cigarette smoking. A critical examination of the criteria for drug addiction demonstrates that none of these criteria is met by nicotine, and that it is much more likely that nicotine in fact limits rather than facilitates smoking.
I wonder who has commissioned this book.
Excellent post Abir!
At the Scottish COVID inquiry it was revealled care home residents' life-long habit of smoking cigarettes was abruptly stopped during lockdown (along with coffee consumption). ''COVID'' symptoms thereafter? No one has picked up on this. Apart from me of course. ;-)
https://biologyphenom.substack.com/p/scottish-covid-inquiry-impact-hearing-fa1
So stopping smoking cold turkey is a viable method.
thank you for sharing your substack. It's very sad to see the neglect that took place in care homes.
Yes, a ''viable method'' but not without consequence many of which could be 'COVID' was my point. It's not only sad to see the neglect etc in care homes i despair even more at the lack of concern shown for these testimonies and that the majority of the 'alt' media and 'medical freedom community' really don't give a damn!
https://biologyphenom.substack.com/p/scottish-covid-19-inquirycare-home
What's the link between stopping smoking cold turkey and covid?
The symptoms.
I’ve tried many times over many years and I have failed… And I think one of the challenges are that I smoke a cigarette that only has 0.3 mg of nicotine. I’m extremely sensitive to nicotine. I’ve tried the low heat cigarettes, and they are 5 mg each. Within 10 minutes I’ve got jitters, Heart palpitations, feeling nervous and anxious. I’ve tried nicotine chewing gum is the same damn thing. Also with the patches. They are all do way too high for those of us who are smokers that already have a low-dose of nicotine and only smoke barely a half a pack of a day. Now the cigarettes that I use are 0.3 mg of nicotine per cigarette, and with high heat that burns it to where you only get 0.15 mg.
Now my thoughts are on these vapes/low heat cigarettes? They’ve calculated the level of nicotine required to sustain a heavy addiction.
And I think that is 5 mg because it’s so curious you can only get those products in 5 mg. Not lower than what I use, and not higher either.
And it’s the same thing with the nicotine gums and the patches…
I don’t really think they’re designed to help us, I think they’re designed to keep us addicted. Because if they really were designed to get you to quit? They would come in much smaller doses. Even though cigarettes that have an upwards of 2 mg for cigarette, when they burn, you only get 1 mg of nicotine.
So the alleged “quitting “companies… The ones that have patches and gums and all sort of other nicotine delivery systems to get you off of cigarettes? There are part of the problem. They use such a high dose they keep you hooked and addicted.
I totally agree about the quit smoking companies! Meant to keep you addicted. On the smallest dose, the only thing you can do is cut back number per day so there's big peaks and valleys.
Totally agree and I wish I could do that. I tried the fake Nicorette cigarettes, too strong. After several puffs, I start to feel sick. Same with gum, the patches.
Oh my God, the patches are the worst!
Pack usually taste around three days for me to consume. Toast like I’m smoking around seven cigarettes a day. When I smoke all I smoke a half a cigarette, maybe a third. I don’t smoke in my car, never smoked in my house, I’m on long trip. I can go several hours without a cigarette. It’s really super lightweight smoker since it’s so difficult to quit.
I’ve had friends who spoke a lot more, some smoking one to two packs a day. I don’t see how anyone has the time to smoke 40 cigarettes a day but I digress… They were able to quit cold turkey. And I think that’s because they were smoking way too much, and they got fed up
Thank you for sharing your insight and personal experience with me. NRT have several disadvantages as you have mentioned above. And I agree that they are not designed to help you quit because they follow the linear tapering method.
Have you tried the nasal spray which delivers 1 mg of nicotine/ one spray in each nostril.
On a parallel note, you must have multiple reasons to want to quit as you have tried several options to quit already. You are quiet invested in this and your perseverance is a key strength here.
I'm curious, if the NRT did not work for you, what other approach do you feel might work for you, especially that your intake of nicotine is very low?
I see it differently… The small amount of nicotine is managing my sanity :-) I just need a little boost every now and then and I’ve tackled many other things up until this point I’ve been focused on tapering off other things like prescription medication, coffee. And I feel much better, so this is the last one and eventually I will get to it. I didn’t know about the nasal spray, I need to see if it’s available in my country.
And what ingredients are in it!
Exactly! I think about that as well. I currently smoke American spirits, so there are no additives. I would switch to the organic version, but I don’t know how to roll, and I think it has higher nicotine than what I use now.
Heads up - Typo in the Breathing Exercises graphic's title.
Thank you for spotting it. I've fixed it.