Nicotine Is Mounting a Comeback in the Wellness Movement
Improving mood and increasing longevity are just some of the unfounded claims about this substance circling around the “natural” medicine corners of the internet.
Nicotine is experiencing a resurgence in the wellness movement, being marketed as a natural substance with benefits ranging from enhanced focus to reduced cognitive decline. However, concerns about these claims persist. As a pulmonary physician-scientist, I'm wary of rebranding nicotine, a compound naturally occurring in tobacco and certain vegetables, as a wellness product based on studies suggesting it may affect cognition and brain function.
Extending these findings to claims about productivity, brain health, longevity, or overall wellness is not supported by robust human studies.
The primary health risks emerge when tobacco is burned, producing thousands of toxic substances, including carcinogens, carbon monoxide, and fine particulate matter. These combustion products can lead to cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cardiovascular disease, and numerous other smoking-related illnesses. While nicotine itself has well-documented negative effects on the brain and body, including activating the sympathetic nervous system, which increases heart rate and blood pressure and disrupts sleep, these risks are overshadowed by the product's non-smoking options such as nicotine pouches or combinations with other substances like caffeine and nootropics.
Nicotine's activation of the sympathetic nervous system can strain the heart and cause sleep disruptions. Its addictive nature stems from its ability to activate reward pathways in the brain, affecting acetylcholine receptors—a neurotransmitter involved in attention, learning, and memory. Although nicotine may temporarily increase alertness and attention, it does not replicate normal acetylcholine signaling and can lead to receptor adaptation and dependence.
The brain's response to repeated nicotine exposure can also alter dopamine release, influencing reward and reinforcement pathways. Benefits may only apply to individuals with mild cognitive impairment, not healthy individuals, and can potentially worsen cognitive performance in higher-performing people.
Promotion of nicotine as a mood and stress management tool is prevalent among wellness influencers. Although nicotine can induce a sense of pleasure and wellbeing temporarily, long-term users often find it exacerbates stress and anxiety. Research indicates that quitting smoking leads to reductions in anxiety, depression, and stress, along with improved mood and overall quality of life.
Long-term nicotine cessation is associated with better mental health, but the allure of nicotine's temporary mood-enhancing effects complicates the assessment of its true cognitive benefits.
Some proponents of the pro-nicotine wellness movement argue that nicotine protects against Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's, and other age-related cognitive declines, and even claims that it slows biological aging and promotes longevity. While there are kernels of research supporting these claims—such as laboratory studies on nicotine's effects on oxidative stress and animal studies suggesting impacts on inflammation and other aging mechanisms—these findings have not translated into evidence that nicotine promotes healthy aging, extends lifespan, or prevents age-related diseases in humans.
Written by urgent.news from Wired's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
