'Crack' nicotene

[Jim Dye]

I quit smoking 3 years and 5 months ago. It was very very difficult to quit. I had no idea what an accomplishment I had made until I read this article. I used to smoke American Spirit brand cigarettes.

Holy shit! I was smoking crack!

'Freebase' nicotine - why some some cigarettes may be more addictive

By Steve Connor, Science Editor

28 July 2003

Some brands of cigarette are likely to be far more habit-forming than others because of the amount of highly addictive "freebase" nicotine they produce.

Scientists have found wide differences between different cigarette brands in the amount of freebase nicotine, which is quickly absorbed through the lungs and carried in the bloodstream to the brain.

Just as smoking "crack" causes vapourised cocaine to reach the brain within seconds, freebase nicotine also has an almost instantaneous effect on the central nervous system, making addiction more likely.

The researchers, from the Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, compared 11 cigarette brands available in the US and found that some contained between 10 and 20 times higher levels of freebase nicotine than expected.

Brands were compared with a laboratory "reference" cigarette containing 1 per cent freebase nicotine. The results ranged from 1 per cent or 2 per cent to 36 per cent for a speciality brand called American Spirit. The popular Marlboro brand contained up to 9.6 per cent freebase nicotine. Other well-known brands included Camel (2.7 per cent), Winston (5 to 6.2 per cent) and Gauloises Blondes (5.7 to 7.5 per cent).

Professor James Pankow, who led the study reported in the journal Chemical Research in Toxicology, said: "During smoking, only the freebase form can [evaporate] from a particle into the air in the respiratory tract. Gaseous nicotine is known to deposit super-quickly in the lungs. From there, it's transported rapidly to the brain.

"Since scientists have shown that a drug becomes more addictive when it is delivered to the brain more rapidly, freebase nicotine levels in cigarette smoke are thus at the heart of the controversy regarding the tobacco industry's use of additives such as ammonia and urea."

A 1997 study led by Professor Pankow linked ammonia additives in tobacco with increased freebase nicotine levels in cigarettes. Separate measurements were made of the first three puffs and about eight subsequent puffs. In many cases, the freebase content was higher in the first puffs. Marlboro, for instance, had a freebase nicotine level of 9.6 per cent in the first three puffs and 2.7 per cent in later puffs.

A spokeswoman for the Tobacco Manufacturers' Association in the UK said: "We cannot comment without seeing the full results of this research. Cigarettes manufactured here ... may be quite different from those in America."

Edited July 28, 2003 by Jim Dye

[catesta]

It makes me laugh that American Spirit is the highest. That is the brand that markets itself as "tobacco with no additives."

I know people believe it is more safe than other brands.

Edited July 28, 2003 by catesta

[Jazzmoose]

I quit smoking 4 years, 7 months, and 18 days ago, but I'm not keeping track anymore...

Speaking seriously, Jim, do you still get those cravings? I still get them, although they're mild, pass fast, and only hit me about once every three months. Still amazes me, though.

[shrugs]

I quit in Jan '98. I bought a pack on NY Eve and when they were done that was it. It's hard to believe it's been that long. I caught myself telling someone that I quit 3 years ago and then realized that it was in fact more like 5.5 years.

I get cravings from time to time and if I drink a lot of Jack Daniels and am in a bar I'll bum one. I'd never buy a pack with the prices these days. I can get a good Belgian Dubbel instead!

Edited July 28, 2003 by shrugs

[randissimo]

I quit in Jan '98. I bought a pack on NY Eve and when they were done that was it. It's hard to believe it's been that long. I caught myself telling someone that I quit 3 years ago and then realized that it was in fact more like 5.5 years.

I get cravings from time to time and if I drink a lot of Jack Daniels and am in a bar I'll bum one. I'd never buy a pack with the prices these days. I can get a good Belgian Dubbel instead!

I gave up cigarettes for good back in 1993.. Now it's hard to play in smoky bars and even be around people with the filthy habit...

[jacman]

i quit cigarettes about 20 years ago. i still get cravings, and when i do i fire up a nice stogie.

[rockefeller center]

[Jazzmoose]

i quit cigarettes about 20 years ago. i still get cravings, and when i do i fire up a nice stogie.

Ouch! Cigars and the pipe was what got me hooked on nicotine in the first place. I think I'll pass...

[Jim Dye]

Speaking seriously, Jim, do you still get those cravings? I still get them, although they're mild, pass fast, and only hit me about once every three months. Still amazes me, though.

Yeah, I still do get cravings now and again. I only gave in to them once. I was at a bar earlier this year. After about 8 pints of Widmer Hefeweizen my will power was gone and I bummed one from a friend. I felt like crap the next day, so I paid for my lapse.

I would still be smoking if it didn't kill you. I do miss it.

[JSngry]

After about 8 pints of Widmer Hefeweizen my will power was gone and I bummed one from a friend. I felt like crap the next day, so I paid for my lapse.

Yeah, blame that one cigarette.

[shrugs]

I don't miss it a bit. It tastes like shit, you always smell like shit, if you drink coffee and smoke, chances are your breath could peel paint unless you always have breath mints handy. I could go on....

And when we have kids, We'll be glad not to be smoking role models for them.

[Soul Stream]

I quit smoking about 4 years ago. A bad musician habit that's easy to get into but hard to break, especially if you're playing bars all the time. Luckily, I managed cold turkey. Best thing I EVER did. I think all ex-smokers would agree.

It's a government sanctioned drug habit that kills more than any other drug. What's the one question they ask when you buy life insurance....do you smoke?. That should tell you what a killer it is. They could care less about your height/weight ratio.

Not to preach, I'm just glad I got out of it. No desire at all to smoke again, and I play in smokey bars a lot. Matter of fact, it makes me want to smoke less. Funny how nasty smoke smells and feels when you're not addicted to it.

Congrats to all who have quit. And here's to encouraging those who want to quit. Keep trying, you can do it!

Also, I'm not against smokers. Being around someone who smokes doesn't bother me in the least. We all have bad habits, smoking is just wearing yours on your sleeve.

Edited July 29, 2003 by Soul Stream

[Jim Dye]

And when we have kids, We'll be glad not to be smoking role models for them.

That's why I'll never start again. I want to be around for my son. Cigs killed my dad at 46. Not gonna be me.

[Soul Stream]

... I play in smokey bars a lot.  Matter of fact, it makes me want to smoke less.  Funny how nasty smoke smells and feels when you're not addicted to it.

yes, most definitely! I am sometimes tempted and do bum a smoke when drinking some alcyhollic beverages, but never in smoky bars. I hate smoky bars and I hate the smell on my clothes the day after visiting such bars. The last time we threw a BIG party almost all smokers went outside. 't Was a gooood party.

I get the feeling as smokers get pushed farther away from general society, that smoking will see a BIG decline over the next 20 years or so. At least that's my hope. The smokers I do know are getting tired of smoking outside, and when the inconvenience of it overwhelms the addictiveness of the habit, we might be getting somewhere.

Looks like the Austin Smoking Ban in bars, which I originally opposed but now support, isn't going to make it. It's been pushed back for further "study." Too bad. I was getting used to the idea of a smoke-free workplace for myself.

[Noj]

I quit smoking cigarettes cold turkey several years ago with very little difficulty. I used to crave it after meals and with alcoholic beverages but I got over it. I have friends who just can't stop.

Weird fact: I smoke in my dreams all the time since quitting.

[shawn·m]

I quite one month ago. I’m tired of relying on a substance to keep from feeling bad, tired of the government financially raping me for my addiction and I’m getting too old to play BS games with my health. You’d think that I’d be able to stay away from the occasional cheat smoke, but that simply isn’t true. Not quite yet anyway.

I like the positive reinforcement approach, you know? The money that would have been spent on the first two weeks worth of smokes paid for my Complete Billie Holiday on Columbia set.

[Soul Stream]

I quite one month ago. I’m tired of relying on a substance to keep from feeling bad, tired of the government financially raping me for my addiction and I’m getting too old to play BS games with my health. You’d think that I’d be able to stay away from the occasional cheat smoke, but that simply isn’t true. Not quite yet anyway.

I like the positive reinforcement approach, you know? The money that would have been spent on the first two weeks worth of smokes paid for my Complete Billie Holiday on Columbia set.

Just keep on keepin' on. My biggest motivating factor was this.... I often thought about some rich, indifferent tobacco executive getting rich at the cost of my health and eventual death. That really pissed me off and I vowed not to let that continue. And it worked.

[Jazzmoose]

Also, I'm not against smokers. Being around someone who smokes doesn't bother me in the least.

Well, I don't mind smokers any more than I mind someone suffering from gas, but I don't want to be closed up in a small room with either one.

[chris olivarez]

I quit over 30 years ago and to this day I still think about picking up the habit again but fortunately I get over it pretty damn quick.

[shawn·m]

Thanks for the support, Soul Stream.

Yup, tobacco companies are pretty dirty and the feds are happy to tell us so. But the government’s guilty of finger-pointing while hustling increased tobacco tax revenue that was originally earmarked for cessation programs. Absolute two-faced bastards those feds.

Well, neither of these groups will be climbing on my back again.