# Nicotine - why no OD? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 19, 2003, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-why-no-od/156076 "2003-02-19T05:12:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Standup\_Karmic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ac91a4/32.png) [@Standup\_Karmic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Standup_Karmic)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-why-no-od/156076/1 "2003-02-19T05:12:00Z")
I’ve heard that if a person is quitting smoking by using “the patch”, that they shouldn’t smoke, because they can have reactions to too much nicotine. Why is it that a person can smoke a pack a day or 4 packs a day without this reaction, but using the patch and smoking will? Just how much nicotine are those things delivering? ---
**Author:** ![dead0man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/edb3f5/32.png) [@dead0man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dead0man)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-why-no-od/156076/2 "2003-02-19T05:30:49Z")
You ever smoke to much? whoa, it can knock you down. One time as a joke, I put a wad of Skoal in my mouth and smoked a cig and a pipe all at the same time. Made me VERY lighted headed, so much so that I couldn’t even finish. So, bottum line is, I dont know if you can OD on nicotine(probably), but it certainly has some nasty side effects in large amounts. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-why-no-od/156076/3 "2003-02-19T05:51:22Z")
A nicotine OD will kill you. However, it’s nearly impossible to for an adult to OD on nicotine by putting tobacco in his mouth, especially when the nicotine is being eliminated from the body at the enhanced rate found in smokers. The nicotine patch is a completely different pathway, and it just adds on to whatever you take in by mouth/lungs. ---
**Author:** ![sleestak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@sleestak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleestak)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-why-no-od/156076/4 "2003-02-19T06:15:00Z")
This reminds me of an Agatha Christy story where the murder was commited by nicotine overdose. IIRC, the dose of nicotine needed to kill someone is quite high compared to the amount a person get through a cigarette. Wow, a little googling and I found this > [@](#): > > In a dose of less than 50 mg, it can cause respiratory failure and general paralysis. Smaller toxic doses can cause heart palpitations, lowered blood pressure, nausea, and dizziness. A person who smokes inhales approximately 3 mg > from one cigarette. From thishttp://www.encyclopedia.com/html/n1/nicotine.asp cite. I would guess that nicotine has to be broken down by the body rather rapidly. I say that because I know people who smoke 3 packs of cigarettes a day, which would = 180 mg of nicotine a day (3mg \* 60 smokes). While they can’t run very far they are not dead. Slee ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-why-no-od/156076/5 "2003-02-19T06:22:47Z")
According to [HIT MAN](http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3501353644&category=268) the lethal dose was at least 40mg, and a good way to poison someone because much of it left the body before the body was even found. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-why-no-od/156076/6 "2003-02-19T09:17:59Z")
I think that the concern with patches + smoking is that the patches deliver a constant “maintenance” dose of nicotine. Smoking at the same time would add a sudden jolt of nicotine which could trigger a heart attack or stroke in those who are susceptible (eg just the sort of long-term smoker who would be trying to give up using a patch in the first place). ---
**Author:** ![antechinus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@antechinus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antechinus)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-why-no-od/156076/7 "2003-02-19T09:21:53Z")
Apparently there is enough nicotine in a cigarette to kill an adult human. The pure nicotine sulphate can be extracted. Sorry no cite. The act of burning the tobacco degrades and dissipates the great proportion of the poison in a cigarette. With this slow rate of introduction to the body, one would get very sick before one had a chance to OD. If ingested, say with chewing tobacco, an overdose is fortunately prevented by convulsive vomiting. A subcutaneous introduction of the poison is another matter. A smoker can withstand more, since their nervous system has adjusted to deal with the presence of the nicotine. ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-why-no-od/156076/8 "2003-02-19T10:44:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by antechinus \* > \*\*A subcutaneous introduction of the poison is another matter. > \*\* Just a point of terminology. Patches act _transdermally_, which is not an exact synonym for _subcutaneously_. (i.e. through the skin rather than under the skin). > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by antechinus \* > \*\*Apparently there is enough nicotine in a cigarette to kill an adult human. The pure nicotine sulphate can be extracted. Sorry no cite. > \*\* [Criteria for Hospital Admission After Acute Nicotine Ingestion](http://www.medal.org/docs_ch33/doc_ch33.21.html) > [@](#): > > Criteria for hospital admission: > (1) pediatric ingestion > • \> 2 whole cigarettes > • \> 6 cigarette butts > • \> 10 pieces of nicotine gum > • a whole cigar or more > • mouthful of chewing tobacco > • nicotine patch > • nicotine-containing insecticides > • \>= 40 mg nicotine total ---
**Author:** ![antechinus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@antechinus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antechinus)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-why-no-od/156076/9 "2003-02-19T10:54:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Desmostylus \* > **Just a point of terminology. Patches act _transdermally_, which is not an exact synonym for _subcutaneously_. (i.e. through the skin rather than under the skin).** Good evening you old sea cow. 🙂 Yes, I know the difference between the two terms. I had forgotten the op had mentioned patches by the time I got to the end of my post. A subcutaneous administration of the poison would be much more effective than transdermal and transdermal would be much more effective than oral and oral more effective than inhalation of smoke. Do you know if the patches have a carrier like DMSO added? ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-why-no-od/156076/10 "2003-02-19T11:10:03Z")
Transdermal patches frequently contain surfactants like DMSO. I don’t know off-hand whether nicotine patches do. I can’t think of any specific reason why they wouldn’t.