Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

What nicotine does to your brain

economist.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

31–40 of 96 posts

Re: What nicotine does to your brain

#31

Post by 0xAFFFF »

sph wrote: post #6

I am diagnosed ADHD. I have used dexamphetamine as prescribed which worked pretty well, in moderate dosages because I am sensitive, but I came to dislike the effect it had on me: I felt like I was attached to a horse that kept pulling me around even when I just wanted to stop and take a break. And the fact that I would crash 5 hours later. In 2020, before even knowing I had ADHD, let alone being medicated, I managed…

Fellow ADHDer here, I'm not a smoker but long before I was diagnosed, lyrics from a song of my favorite band/artist hit me particularly hard. It was Drag by Joey Cape/Lagwagon, a song about the struggles of smoking. Here's the part, especially the last two lines.

  The drag on the next one
  Is something I can look forward to
  Something to slow the synapse
  Something to do with my hands
I'm lucky enough to be properly medicated now and to have been shielded from smoking by a combination of favorable family environment, a great pediatrist back then and great prevention efforts in school, because if not I'm pretty sure I would have been a heavy smoker. The need for mental peace and focus was just too strong.

Re: What nicotine does to your brain

#32

Post by 0xEF »

cluckindan wrote: post #12
elcritch wrote: post #3

I can't read the article unfortunately. However nicotine also seems somewhat palliative to a range of mental illnesses like schizophrenia, bipolar, anxiety, etc. I once read a paper that said something like 90% of schizophrenics were chain smokers who were self-medicating. By that lens the widespread amount smoking in the past makes sense in eras before other pharmaceuticals.

You’d be chasing dopamine hits too if the system forced you to take antidopaminergic medication.

Not really a difference for those of us who are not medicated, though. Everything around us, especially the stuff served up on the screen you are looking at now, is all clamoring for our attention, burning out our reward centers with reckless abandon in the process. Jumping from app to app has us chasing dopamine crumbs just like cigarettes did when I smoked them for 15 years of my life. The lesson is if you want to hack a human, make them feel something.

Re: What nicotine does to your brain

#33

Post by mamonster »

wohoef wrote: post #25
mamonster wrote: post #21

Honestly, now that you have all-white snus, basically all of the issues of cigarettes are gone (and they are so fking expensive in Europe) and you get all of the benefits of nicotine. I don't need to go outside the office, just sit at my desk and continue working. Now that the market is developed you can vary nicotine dosage at will. Maybe someone else here heard something different, but my dentist told me that there…

Find a new dentist. Nicotine pouches are incredibly bad for oral health. Huge risk of oral cancer. And it’ll make your gums recline, exposing your nerves (this hurts). Also nicotine itself is quite bad for you to begin with (cardiovascular health, anxiety, etc). Sure snus is better than smoking, but that’s just because most things are better than smoking.

>And it’ll make your gums recline

Would you happen to have a source? I mentioned this specifically, he said that he is only aware of gums reclining for very heavy users (5+ pouches a day) and that from the other patients he has 1-2 pouches don't seem to have any noticeable effect.

Re: What nicotine does to your brain

#34

Post by actionfromafar »

sph wrote: post #23
actionfromafar wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That pet theory might have legs. I like it.

I also blame screens. My other pet theory is that in 30 years we'll discover there is really no such thing as ADHD, just pre-frontal dopaminergic dysfunction from a lot of different causes, such as addiction (there is a great presentation by Dr. Todd Love about how ADHD and drug addiction present exactly the same), superstimuli frying our reward systems and natural differences in drive between people. What we're doin…

I think screens can provoke AHDL-like symptoms or perhaps even trigger ADHD, but it existed before screens. Also a lot of illnesses are managed, even when we actually know the cause, we can't always undo the damage, just manage it.

Re: What nicotine does to your brain

#35

Post by iammjm »

zgk7iqea wrote: post #17
dingdingdang wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

... but we will know from this link, thanks! edit: to think that such short-form drivel is locked behind a paywall is just sad.

the age of subscriptions. what, you don't want to subscribe?

the economist subscription is also one of the priciest

Re: What nicotine does to your brain

#36

Post by Pilottwave »

sph wrote: post #6

I am diagnosed ADHD. I have used dexamphetamine as prescribed which worked pretty well, in moderate dosages because I am sensitive, but I came to dislike the effect it had on me: I felt like I was attached to a horse that kept pulling me around even when I just wanted to stop and take a break. And the fact that I would crash 5 hours later. In 2020, before even knowing I had ADHD, let alone being medicated, I managed…

I was just recently talking to my fellow ADHD friends on the benefits that i felt when i started vaping this summer. It was like i was medicating away my ADHD. I turned to AI to investigate further, its response seemed to underwrite this observation

Gemini output: Research is exploring nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) agonists as a potential non-stimulant treatment for ADHD, sidestepping the issues of pure nicotine's high addiction liability.

The mechanism focuses on boosting dopamine (DA) and acetylcholine (ACh) release in brain areas governing attention and executive function, primarily by targeting the alpha4beta2 and alpha7 nAChR subtypes.

The goal is highly selective compounds that target the cognitive benefits (linked to alpha4beta2) while avoiding undesirable side effects and addiction pathways.

Selective alpha4beta2 Agonists (e.g., ABT-418, ABT-894/Sofinicline): These were developed to strongly activate the receptor most associated with DA release. Pilot and Phase II studies showed a signal of efficacy in adults with ADHD, with effect sizes similar to non-stimulant medications like atomoxetine.

Varenicline (Chantix/Champix): This is a partial alpha4beta2 agonist, FDA-approved for smoking cessation. Smaller trials suggested improvements in ADHD symptoms, but large-scale development for ADHD has been limited or terminated, and it is not approved for this indication.

Bupropion (Wellbutrin/Zyban): An established non-stimulant ADHD treatment (NDRI) and smoking cessation aid. While its main action is norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibition, it also acts as a nicotinic receptor antagonist (blocking it), which is believed to help reduce nicotine craving. It is an approved non-stimulant option for ADHD.

Re: What nicotine does to your brain

#37

Post by michelpp »

I caught covid for the first time in jan of 2024, the illness itself wasn't that bad for me, like a common cold, but the aftereffects lingered for months. Eventually my ability to smell and taste came back in a few weeks, but the mental brain fog would not let go. I would sleep over 12 hours a night and still be tired. According to my fitness tracker my daily step and energy burn counts were cut in half. It was so bad I forgot my own phone number at one point and my gmail password. Looking at a screen of code was impossible, I couldn't focus for more than a few seconds. My friends commented on the noticeable changes in my acuity and behavior.

Based on some online anecdotal evidence, I decided to try nicotine "therapy". I bought 4mg smoking cessation mints, cut them in half with a pill cutter, and took 10-12 2mg doses per day at roughly one hour intervals. The effect was immediate and brain fog lifted in less than a week. It was like coming out of a long dream, or like I had been stoned for six months and then suddenly I was sober again. My fitness stats have exceeded where I was before I got sick.

This is just my own anecdotal experience, and there have definitely been some downsides. The mints are about $50/month. My dosage has ticked up a bit and I'm certainly addicted, at least once a day I take a full mint instead of a half for an extra kick. I'd like to taper off, but I'm not sure if I do how to know if any effects are withdrawal or resumption of the covid brain fog. I have a light caffeine habit (2 cups every morning) and I don't see the mints being any more harmful than the coffee, so I think I'm just going to stick with it.

Re: What nicotine does to your brain

#38

Post by NotGMan »

HipstaJules wrote: post #26
jesuswasjew wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a bad propaganda channel.

Hey! Why do you say that? Curious to understand your POV

They are funded by wealthy people who most likely have them push their agenda.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurzgesagt#Sources_of_funding

Re: What nicotine does to your brain

#39

Post by vladvasiliu »

johnisgood wrote: post #7
elcritch wrote: post #3

I can't read the article unfortunately. However nicotine also seems somewhat palliative to a range of mental illnesses like schizophrenia, bipolar, anxiety, etc. I once read a paper that said something like 90% of schizophrenics were chain smokers who were self-medicating. By that lens the widespread amount smoking in the past makes sense in eras before other pharmaceuticals.

Nicotine has lots of benefits, as per many articles on PubMed. That said, tobacco is still one of the worst (unhealthiest) ways to consume nicotine.

What other widespread way of consuming nicotine was there before patches and vapes?

I'm all for measures looking to curb smoking, but the issue is that nicotine seems to be put in the same category, at least judging by PSAs in France. Every nicotine-containing product has scary messages on it, although not to the point of actual cigarettes.

I think it's the general trend of losing nuance in public discourse. Things are either all bad or all good. This only confuses to public who can't be reasonably expected to peruse PubMed and build their own understanding of the subject.

Re: What nicotine does to your brain

#40

Post by ramon156 »

Brain fog for me became a lot less prevalent recently. I got no idea what it is but I don't want it to stop.

I honestly think brain fog is mostly a mentality thing, but I have no evidence to back this up. It doesn't really matter what I eat. The only thing I changed was I started gymming again and I'm taking creatine. I still eat garbage food

Post reply on HN