Is Nicotine Really Addictive, or have we been Mislead?

[ejuiceconnoisseur]

Ever since I abandoned the 20+ year addiction to smoking (analog) cigarettes, I’ve noticed that even though the nicotine is still present in my e-liquid (I’m currently vaping anywhere between 12 and 18mg of nicotine) the drive and “need” to vape just isn’t as strong as the “need” to light up a cigarette. Now it feels more like snacking or biting fingernails than anything even remotely akin to a hardcore addiction. So how can this be? I know I’m still pumping regular amounts of fairly strong nicotine dosages into my body… but I don’t wake up and immediately make a beeline to “take the dog out” like I used to. So, being a relatively nerdy (but very cool) guy, the part of my brain that thirsts for scientific dilemmas thought a particular thought: “Is nicotine actually addictive?” I put in a call to my punctual and reliable friend, Google, and here’s what he told me:


Nicotine, by itself, is actually no more addictive than caffeine, and actually produces a similar effect on the body. It’s very obvious, when observing the world of nicotine delivery systems, that those who chew nicotine gum, use transdermal nicotine patches, and even those who vape E-cigarettes, still feel that there is something missing… at least for a while. I’ve known plenty of people who smoke while wearing the patch, or chewing nicotine gum or lozenges. I also know plenty of vapers who still imbibe in analogs, if at a reduced rate. So, through simple logical reasoning, we can inductively arrive at the conclusion that there is something other than nicotine that causes the “extremely addictive” qualities of tobacco smoking.


According to the National Institute of Drug Addiction, the presence of monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) in tobacco smoke is actually of higher concern than nicotine. Essentially, these little guys boost your serotonin levels. They’re anti-depressants. And there, my dear friend, is the issue. We’ve all known for years that Big Tobacco purposefully... (Click here to read the rest of my article.)

 

[UncleChuck]

Personally I feel I was far more addicted to the MAOIs in tobacco than the nicotine. I can go hours and hours without vaping now, when I smoked I needed a cig every hour or I'd get crazy and my personality would totally change. I really would like to try WTA juices but I'm worried that I'd just get addicted to those alkaloids all over again, and be hopelessly addicted to extremely expensive juice. I'd also prefer to not experience the extreme mood swings when I don't get my fix.

Everyone's different and I think there are some people who need the nic more than they need the MAOIs, but for the people who really have trouble quitting smoking it has to be the MAOIs. I find it odd that when you are taking prescription MAOIs you are NOT supposed to quickly stop taking them. But those same doctors that tell you that, tell you to immediately quit smoking. Would they tell you to just stop taking your meds? Probably not, because they know it makes people crazy.

I don't think it's the nic at all that causes the strong addiction, or the symptoms when stopping, I'd bet it's the MAOIs. Very strange the only thing everyone ever talks about in regards to cigarettes is the nicotine.

 

[Glen Snyder]

I think it must vary from person to person. Why? Because of how easily I stopped smoking in less than a week with only 1 cigarette per day then cut nic to zero in a little over 2 months.

 

[Cactus Breath]

Interesting topic, and one I've spent a lot of time thinking about today (especially the nicotine vs. nic/MAOI issue). When I first got off cigarettes and started vaping, I was at 18mg nicotine and still had cravings. I went up to 24mg nic and they largely went away. After a few weeks I went back down to 18mg (occasionally vaping 24mg in the mornings) and was fine - no cravings. I've pretty much leveled off there and while I enjoy vaping and sometimes chain vape, I also find it a lot easier to go without when I have to than it was with cigarettes. I attended a function last weekend where I couldn't vape for nearly 6 hours - which would have driven me out of my mind with nic fits when I was smoking, but it barely even registered as a minor annoyance to not be able to vape.

I recently ordered some 12mg juice and today was the first day I tried using it all day to see if it affected my nicotine cravings. Strangely enough, I've felt absolutely none and haven't vaped any more (or less) than I was at 18mg. I haven't smoked a cigarette in over 7 weeks, so I'm thinking that the MAOIs have cleared out of my system and maybe there's really something to that study about the MAOIs being the agent which actually causes the cravings/"nic fits".

In a few weeks I'm going to try stepping down to 6mg and see how it affects me. I'm really not on a mission to reach zero nic - it's never been my intention or goal - but if it happens, it happens. If not, I'll keep vaping at whatever level works for me. Either way, I'm 100% convinced that vaping is a far healthier alternative to smoking.

 

[suspectK]

Addictive is a really broad term. I can be addicted to folding laundry, but that doesn't mean I'll go into withdrawal if I couldn't fold clothes. "Crease in jeans look-a sharp."..but I don't fold my clothes...just a ridiculous comparison.

 

[dr g]

I don't think it's very addictive, at least at the levels of vaping. I have no drive to vape other than the enjoyment of it, I can go hours, days or whatever without it. I'd be fine with vaping 0 nic, in fact a lot of time I am vaping close to 0 nic.

 

[ScottP]

There are over 4000 chemicals found in the smoke of various cigarettes. You can bet many of them are also just as addictive, if not more addictive than the nicotine. I would not doubt for a second that some of them are even put in there by Big-T for the sole purpose of strengthening the addition. So is nicotine addictive? Yes. Is it the sole ingredient in smoke people are addicted to? Absolutely not. Were we lied to? Not specifically, it was more a lie of omission than anything else.

 

[yzer]

Yes, pure nicotine is an addictive substance. How addictive is it? I don't know. After 35 years I haven't quit, yet.

 

[Rat2chat2]

I don't know if I am addicted to nic or just the blowing vapers. I've read where it is no more harmful for you than coffee. I'm not giving up my coffee either......

 

[yzer]

Harmful doesn't mean addictive.

 

[grandmato5]

For me personally, no, nicotine is not an addictive substance anymore then caffeine is. I most often drink decafe coffee but sometimes choose to enjoy a cup or two of caffeinated coffee. I treat nicotine the same way now most often vaping zero mg juice but occasionally enjoying some nic in my juice. Before I started vaping I was a smoker for over 35 years smoking 2 pad and I WAS addicted to those cigarettes.

 

[Ryedan]

I also found it easy to quit nicotine once I was over the cigarette addiction. I think it's this way for most people. The general public has been brainwashed into thinking nicotine is the root of all smoking evils. I used to think that too.

 

[Robino1]

I don't know if its just me but I used to have a weird phenomenon happen when I was a smoker. After going about 2 hours or more without a cigarette, I could swear I smelled a cigarette burning somewhere which would then trigger my need to have a cigarette immediately. But, here is where the strange happens, there was NO CIGARETTE BURNING in my vicinity. Ever.

It took me a month of vaping and smoking to actually make the switch. My cigarette consumption gradually became less, over that month, until it was down to 2 puffs before bed. That lasted 2 nights before I said screw it and the 3rd night I went without it and finally was cigarette free.

Since I have become a 100% vaper, that phenomenon has not happened to me. Has anyone else ever experienced that phantom cig smell when they smoked? Or was I just crazy?

 

[retired1]

Or was I just crazy?

Do we REALLY have to answer that?

 

[YKruss]

Interesting thread on this very topic - http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/nicotine/288159-nicotine-myth-busted-nicotine-does-not-cause-adiction-imo.html

 

[bluecat]

I don't know if its just me but I used to have a weird phenomenon happen when I was a smoker. After going about 2 hours or more without a cigarette, I could swear I smelled a cigarette burning somewhere which would then trigger my need to have a cigarette immediately. But, here is where the strange happens, there was NO CIGARETTE BURNING in my vicinity. Ever.

It took me a month of vaping and smoking to actually make the switch. My cigarette consumption gradually became less, over that month, until it was down to 2 puffs before bed. That lasted 2 nights before I said screw it and the 3rd night I went without it and finally was cigarette free.

Since I have become a 100% vaper, that phenomenon has not happened to me. Has anyone else ever experienced that phantom cig smell when they smoked? Or was I just crazy?

No one in my house smokes. I quit smoking over a year ago and have been vaping ever since. I got a huge whiff of cigarette smoke last night and a craving for a smoke. It happened when I was smoking and still happens now. After that one whiff... it was gone.. I even went outside and there was no smell at all.

 

[soba1]

I know the first couple of weeks after I put down the cigarettes. I was getting a craving for cigarettes very slight.
But as time passes less and less.
I did read on a post here somewhere that it takes 8 mos for the maoi's to leave the body.
I want three hrs without vaping, while I somewhat wanted to vape. It wasn't crazy strong like when I smoked.
Interesting science. Nice thread.

 

[Robino1]

Do we REALLY have to answer that?

Brat

 

[jamentertainment]

I'm addicted and proud of it...It relaxes me, having a wife and three kids, my life revolves around my 24mg

 

[zoiDman]

Addiction is a Funny thing.

Seems there is Physical Addiction. And there is Mental Addiction.

I hear people say that Nicotine is "No More Addicting that Caffeine". OK. Not sure Where or What they are Basing this on. But if it is True for a Percentage of the Population, How Addicting is Caffeine to Most People?

I know I'm not going to Give Up Coffee in the Mourning. Period. End of Report. Aint Gonna Happen.

And I read Info that Talks about Nicotine in Isolation. OK. Then why do I seem to have a Hard Time going Completely to 0mg? Why Isn't everyone going to or at 0mg?