Our free newsletter
offers tips and tools
you need to create
a happier and
healthier family!

Categories


All Articles
CALL: (888) 972-7736

Study shows that nicotine affects the brain in a similar way as cocaine

By Staff Writer

A recent study by the University of Chicago Medical Center shows that one 15-minute exposure to nicotine causes the neurons that are used to signal a reward in the brain to become stimulated. This reaction is very similar to that which occurs when a person takes cocaine, a highly-addictive drug.

Although smoking can also be a behavioral addiction, the study shows that nicotine affects the brain in a similar way as cocaine, which explains why many people have such a hard time quitting cigarette use and why people who try smoking can become addicted.

This information is particularly significant for parents who believe that their children smoke cigarettes. Statistics show that if adults do not force their children to quit, they will most likely continue to smoke through adulthood. According to the Nemours Foundation, 90 percent of tobacco users started using the drug before they turned 18.

Parents who want to help their teens quit smoking or using another substance may want to consider enrolling them in schools for troubled youths. Professionals at these institutions are trained to manage various addictions in teenagers. 

Share |