In this column, the Grand Master suggests that lowering acid levels in the body can help curb nicotene cravings and hence help one to stop smoking. Has any further research been done on this? Has anyone tried it and can they report back to us?
If anything, I suspect the pH balance is more an effect than a cause of nicotine cravings.
The bit about acid in the urine intrigued me. I’ve noticed for years that my cravings for a cigarette often seem to be related to the need to urinate. I can’t count the number of times I’ve lit up a smoke, only to realize that I needed to take a leak (of course, this usually happens in situations where I’ve stepped outside because smoking isn’t allowed inside, and so I can’t just take my cigarette into the bathroom…)
I tested it out once. I wanted a cigarette, but instead I went into the bathroom. A moment later, I had the urge to uninate.
I don’t know about the antacid thing, but I don’t think Cecil answered the question he was asked. I’m still curious why nicotine is considered a stimulant when it seems to calm people.
He kinda did. The notion that nicotine calms people is probably true for those addicted to it. Getting your shot of nicotine while in withdrawal returns you to normalcy from an anxious state i.e. a ‘calming’ effect. In someone who’s not tolerant to nicotine, it acts as a stimulant, I guess.
First of all his comment about how smoking is “somewhat” addictive must have been tongue in cheek. It is a very addictive behavior, one that I quit a few months ago.
His response about the easing of withdrawal is true though, albeit incredibly void of any real scientific discussion which he usually entertains us with. There are several neurotransmitters involved in the act of smoking, which go beyond even the use of nicotine itself, by the way. Smoking for instance has an MAOI effect whereas nicotine itself does not, as demonstrated through the use of nicotine gum versus smoking (another reason smoking is hard to quit, not just because it is “something to do with your hands”). I digress…
Smoking increases activity at the nicotinic receptor, not surprisingly, which also cascades down into two other main neurotransmitter activities. Acetyl Choline and Dopamine levels are also raised after a cigarette is smoked.
You put all three of these chemicals together, and just to keep this brief, you get an explosion of ‘feel good’ within your body and brain. After a while your body adapts to this ‘feel good’ and pretty soon just to feel normal you have to take another drag from a smoke.
Dopamine, which is also the main chemical involved in cocaine use, is the reward drug inside someone’s brain. It doesn’t necessarily stimulate you like a cup of coffee or even methamphetamine does, nor does it slow you down and mellow you out like valium or alcohol does. It just makes you feel damn good. As soon as levels of dopamine lower beyond a certain point, a smoker will reach for a smoke to take them back to that point.
Again, this is all broken down into very basic components, but hopefully it helps some people understand a little better what is happening.
I want to add that there seems to be something in Doublemint gum which helps a LOT.