An interesting finding that could change the way we look at nicotine delivery systems, including e-cigarettes, is being considered. According to the latest research, nicotine addiction is more psychological than physical.
The study, published in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry, involved collecting and monitoring the brainwaves of 24 long-term smokers using an MRI machine. Each patient visited the research facility four times, but only two of the four times they were given real cigarettes. When given a real cigarette, they were told it was real, and once told it wasn’t. The same process was repeated with “fake” cigarettes.
The results? When given real cigarettes, subjects felt satisfied only when they were smoking real cigarettes. When told they wouldn’t get nicotine (although they still did), they didn’t feel any nicotine effects at all. On the other hand, nicotine-free cigarettes had no effect on subjects, no matter what they were told.
Our brains send messages to our bodies through nerve cells using special messengers called neurotransmitters. Nicotine molecules are shaped very similarly to molecules of a neurotransmitter called Acetylcholine, which plays a role in many bodily functions such as muscle activity, breathing, heart rate, learning and memory. That is why some of our senses become more acute after consuming nicotine.
Scientists have recently made new discoveries, showing that nicotine is also involved in increasing a neurotransmitter called Dopamine. Dopamine is a feel-good hormone that makes you feel more excited. However, according to the latest research in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry, most of these uses of nicotine cannot work unless the smoker knows and truly believes that they are getting nicotine, once again emphasizing the power of the mind.
So how can this knowledge be applied to a smoking campaign?
There is still a lot of controversy about e-cigarettes as they have been proven to be the most effective method to help quit smoking . One of the main points mentioned around its effectiveness is that it feels like smoking, unlike when using other nicotine replacement therapies. Through the act of smoking an e-cigarette, users will feel the absorption of nicotine more clearly, which is why nicotine applications work and bring a more comfortable feeling than when using nicotine gum or patches.
According to the CDC, only 6% of smokers who quit smoking successfully quit smoking, and according to the study above, smoking cessation methods only work if the smoker truly believes that it will work. However, this is not necessarily a bad thing, on the contrary, the future is promising as there have been many studies showing evidence of a link between the use of e-cigarettes and reduced smoking, with a recent EU study showing that e-cigarettes have helped 6 million people quit the deadly habit of smoking.
This article was published on Vapingpost by Diane Caruana and translated by The Vape Club
