Addiction - Tobacco

• Source: Tobacco is derived from the plants Nicotiana tabacum and Nicotiana rustica.
• Origin: It originated in the Americas, where Native Americans used it for medicinal purposes and in religious ceremonies (e.g., smoking the 'pipe of peace').
• Global Spread: Introduced to Europe in the mid-1500s by Spanish and Portuguese explorers. The plant was named Nicotiana in honour of Jean Nicot, a French ambassador.
• Current Usage: Despite severe health warnings, it is used regularly by over 1.5 billion people worldwide today.

• Nicotiana tabacum: A stout, tall annual herb (1.2–2.7 m) with large leaves.
• Nicotiana rustica: A smaller plant (0.6–1.2 m) with thick, broadly oval leaves, capable of growing in more rigorous climates.
• Harvesting: The crop is ready for harvest 90 to 130 days after transplanting, when the leaves turn from dark green to a brittle greenish-yellow. After harvesting, leaves are cured in specially designed barns.

A flowering branch of Nicotiana tabacum

The Addictive Component: Addiction is caused by nicotine. It stimulates nerve impulses, relaxes muscles, and releases adrenaline (which raises blood pressure and heart rate).

Speed of Absorption:

• Cigarettes: Inhaled directly into the lungs, allowing nicotine to rapidly distribute and reach the brain within 10 seconds.
• Cigars and Pipes: Smoke is generally not inhaled into the lungs; nicotine is absorbed much more slowly through the mouth's mucosal lining.

• Cancer: Tobacco tar is highly suspected of causing lung cancer. Cigarette smoking strongly increases the risk of cancer in the larynx, oesophagus, and bladder. Chewing tobacco is heavily linked to oral cancer.
• Respiratory and Heart Disease: Causes coronary artery disease, chronic bronchitis, and emphysema.
• Blood Oxygen: Carbon monoxide in the smoke severely reduces the blood's capacity to carry oxygen.
• Pregnancy Risks: Smoking mothers are at risk of having smaller babies with an increased risk of infant mortality at birth or during the first week.
• Mortality Statistics: Smoking causes 3 million deaths globally each year. An average smoker loses about 15 years of life. It is responsible for 90% of lung cancer/bronchitis deaths and 25% of coronary heart disease deaths.

• Quitting triggers a withdrawal syndrome that can last for a month or more.
• Symptoms include intense cravings, irritability, cognitive deficits, sleep disturbances, and increased appetite.
• These symptoms peak within the first few days and generally subside over a few weeks.

Personal Determination: The most essential factor in quitting is the individual's own willpower, heavily supported by motivation from family and doctors.

Alternative Therapies: Acupuncture, hypnosis, yoga, and aversion therapy have helped many individuals.

Drug Therapies:

• Tranquillisers: Used to manage the craving experience (though they can sometimes make quitting harder since nicotine is a stimulant).
• Substitutes: Providing a safer stimulant alternative. Examples include lobeline (derived from the Indian tobacco plant, Lobelia inflata) and nicotine chewing gums, like Nicorette.