
Nicotine
Put your brand in front of thousands monthly and support the growth of harm reduction.
Effects
Nicotine acts as a stimulant and is typically taken by users to increase sensations of alertness, euphoria and reduce feelings of anxiety. These positive mood states accentuated by stimulants are followed by a recovery period, during this time negative moods are experienced. While smokers report feeling more alert and less stressed following the first cigarette of the day, between cigarettes they feel less focused and more irritable or anxious.
Regular smokers crave nicotine again within 20 minutes to an hour of smoking due to the rapid changes in mood, this is why a typical consumption pattern for someone who smokes is 10-30 cigarettes/day. As with other stimulant drugs, the body’s tolerance to nicotine builds quickly and regular tobacco users will require more nicotine to function day-to-day.
When there is a high amount of nicotine consumed acutely users can feel nauseous, dizzy and restless. Withdrawal symptoms from nicotine tend to be amplified symptoms of the feelings experienced between cigarettes and can include difficulty sleeping, concentrating, depressed mood and headaches.
Here are the most common effects, not everyone necessarily experiences all of them every time they consume the drug and other effects not listed might be felt. The likelihood of experiencing negative effects is far greater at high doses.
The effects are (from positive to negative):
Mild analgesic (at low dose)
Improved mental focus and productivity
Euphoria
Relaxation (anxiolytic)
Group identity
Increased heart rate
Nausea
Dizziness
Sleep disturbances
Tremors
Nicotine Overdose
A nicotine overdose (as a result of e.g. multiple nicotine lozenges) can be very harmful or fatal and requires immediate medical attention. The CDC states that about 50mg of nicotine is potentially deadly for the average adult 21 22. The first signs of a nicotine overdose include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, fast heartbeat, high blood pressure, difficulty breathing, agitation and seizures. If the overdose is significantly over the recommended intake or left untreated, people can go onto develop serious issues like an abnormal or very slow heartbeat, muscle paralysis and coma.19 20
Put your brand in front of thousands monthly and support the growth of harm reduction.