Nicotine: The Saint and the Devil

Nicotine: The Saint and The Devil

Nicotine is one of the many drugs that has a high dependence on the addiction and reliance of its users. Analogous to a countless number of drugs, the affects of Nicotine can both help to deteriorate and, surprisingly in this case, protect one’s health. Although the involvement of Nicotine with a myriad of illnesses that smoking tobacco and cigarettes usher, there is no denying its influence in the brain, specifically in the exclusive nicotinic receptors and reward system. Cigarette smoking still remains as the centerpiece of anti-drug agencies. With the dependence on the world-spread drug continuing steadily, researchers remain steadfast in their search for the positive and negatives effects on the brain that the drug entails.

The association of Nicotine with one of the larger leading causes of death validates its complexity and ability to stimulate the user’s mind. Research conducted by Dr. Paul Newhouse of Vanderbilt University’s Center for Cognitive Medicine sets out to prove that Nicotine has many beneficial aspects as well. Previous research already concludes that Nicotine is coupled with the area involved with acetylcholine, used for retention and cognitive intellect. Dr. Paul tested patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), which is a common antecedent of Alzheimer’s Disease. Collecting data from 74 non-smoking adults that suffer from MCI, half were given Nicotine patches to be used daily and the other half placebo patches. After roughly half a calendar year, the data collected showed substantial increases in memory development and alertness with those that used the Nicotine patches. Perhaps one of the possibly surprising outcomes was the lack of withdrawal or dangerous side effects in the users. Nicotine can be safe drug, and is administered over the counter. Providing Nicotine treatment for disorders like schizophrenia, down syndrome, Alzheimer’s disease is a developing field, and it seems that the drug itself works at its highest capacity when there are already preexisting complications. It has often been assumed that people that suffer from health issues can self-prescribe his or herself with smoking to allow their mind to function properly. It is true that the population that suffers from Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s is historically more dense with smokers. This leads one to wonder if said patients can attribute their addiction to this increase in capability or for other reasons like repeated reward. 

Many times, addiction is offset by a reward of some sort. If one is harming themselves during this process, it can be assumed that that reward is thought to be in his or her better interest moving forward. This Is due, in part, to the compensation factors that are associated with the drug. If heroin users didn’t experience a spontaneous stream of euphoria, the ability to refuse it should be much easier. In “Nicotine Potentiation of Excitatory Inputs to Ventral Tegmental Area Dopamine Neurons”, Dr. Dan McGehee tackles the exact areas that nicotine confronts in the brain. Subjecting a section of rat Vetral Tegmental Area (VTA) cells to the smoke of a cigarette, testing the response of neurons associated with neurotransmitter dopamine. Similar effects are seen in cocaine and other various amphetamine. Nicotine stimulates these reward-based neurons in the nucleus accumbens, rewarding the user with a rush much smaller in magnitude to that of heroine. Even so, the incredibly small euphoria of Nicotine may not play the largest role in the addiction though. Often times, the process and action of smoking coupled with the activities associated with it are what illicit this craving. A user can tell you first-hand of his or her routine of fetching their pack, going outside, taking their cigarette and finally receiving that mental break. Nicotine is a complex drug, and its ability to enhance the user for a long period of time with such little amounts makes it highly usable. As Dr. McGehee puts it, “It would be difficult to design a better drug to promote addiction”.

As research continues to be published on the many positive effects of Nicotine, it is only natural for one to question its part in the addiction to smoking. For those that already suffer from a shortcoming such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s Disease, or Schizophrenia, it can work to improve long-lasting damage in memory and learning. What makes it highly dangerous is its ability to trigger the excitation of dopamine neurons, allowing the user to experience a low-grade rush long-lasting neurotransmitter effects. Even with the general decrease in cigarette smoking across the world, the several ways one can be drawn to Nicotine allows it to join an exclusive club of drugs that are done and abused almost in ubiquity. Depending on the user’s physical and mental state, Nicotine has a variety of neurological effects that seemingly ease the consumer’s mind. Even with its positive effects, the orchestrated release of dopamine, also in cocaine, can work against the mind in many ways in the long-term. Although the addiction of this infamous drug can be attributed to all of the affects above, there are many factors outside of the Nicotine itself that draw somebody back to their next dosage. Whether it is the desire for your next little rush or the longing for an allotment of time where your brain can function more properly, Nicotine provides the user with a luxury car with minimal gas.

Works Cited

"Dr. Paul Newhouse, Vanderbilt University – Nicotine and Memory." Dr. Paul Newhouse, Vanderbilt University – Nicotine and Memory. Web. 2 Mar. 2016.