Month: September 2022

THE NICOTINE NICHE. "With growing regulatory pressure against cigarettes ... tobacco companies seem to be reframing their business as maintaining nicotine addiction through other products ... Thus, it seems that now, as in 1963, tobacco companies remain firmly entrenched in “…the business of selling nicotine." http://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/21/2/92.full View in LinkedIn

QUITTING IS HARD. "Withdrawal symptoms ... generally peak in intensity 3-5 days after you quit, and usually disappear after 2 weeks, although some may persist for several months: Tingling in the hands and feet; Sweating; Intestinal disorders (cramps, nausea); Headaches; Sore throat, coughing, and signs of a cold." http://www.nytimes.com/health/guides/specialtopic/smoking-and-smokeless-tobacco/symptoms-of-withdrawal.html View in LinkedIn

INCREASING ADDICTION. "Modern cigarettes are very different from cigarettes of the past, in that they have been extensively engineered to be delivery devices ... Evidence from tobacco industry documents indicates that additives have been used to increase free base nicotine and addiction potential and to mask and treat symptoms." https://lnkd.in/dazJ8n2 View in LinkedIn

THE ROOT OF THE ISSUE. "No one has ever become a cigarette smoker by smoking cigarettes without nicotine." (WL Dunn, Phillip Morris 1972). And without nicotine being addictive, making withdrawal very hard. A key to addiction is the speed of the drug entry, the pharmacokinetics, to the target tissues. https://lnkd.in/dvrbqmZ View in LinkedIn

NICOTINE AS AN ADDICTIVE DRUG, industry quotes, clearly aware of the fact that without nicotine addiction, the industry would not exist. An aware that they are really a segment of the pharmaceutical industry. Except unregulated. https://lnkd.in/dTrDKHx View in LinkedIn

MORE POTENT TODAY THAN EVER. During the period 1999-2012, nicotine yields per cigarette have increased 14.5%. This was achieved by careful and systematic product engineering, and by a deep understanding of how to better manipulate nicotine's addiction by the use of additives. " "2014_06_19_DesignedforAddiction_web.pdf View in LinkedIn

HARD TO KICK THE HABIT. "It is well documented that most smokers identify tobacco use as harmful and express a desire to reduce or stop using it, and nearly 35 million of them want to quit each year. Unfortunately, more than 85 percent of those who try to quit on their own relapse, most within a week." https://lnkd.in/dgAS4T4 View in LinkedIn

CDC ON NICOTINE. "Research suggests that nicotine is as addictive as heroin, cocaine, or alcohol." It does not get clearer than that. https://lnkd.in/dgcQaMb View in LinkedIn

FREE BASE NICOTINE. Ammonia was introduced into cigarettes to convert nicotine into freebase, which is more readily absorbed and gives a stronger rush, just as was found with freebase cocaine, or crack. It was responsible from turning Marlboro from a marginal brand to a leading brand. The modern cigarette is different. " "2014_06_19_DesignedforAddiction_web.pdf View in LinkedIn

HIGHER BIOAVAILABILITY OF MODERN NICOTINE. "Tobacco companies are using chemicals to strip salts off of the nicotine molecule (de-protonate it), allowing nicotine to more quickly and easily penetrate tissues and membranes, and making it more "bioavailable" to the lungs and brain. This rapid penetration form of nicotine is known as "free-base." https://lnkd.in/d9E4Jw4 View in LinkedIn