How second-hand smoke may increase vulnerability to nicotine addiction
May 3rd, 2011 - 2:48 pm ICT by ANIWashington, May 3 (ANI): A study has found that exposure to second-hand smoke has a direct, measurable impact on the brain, and that the effect is similar to what happens in the smoker’s brain.
According to the study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, exposure to this second-hand smoke evokes cravings among smokers.
The study used positron emission tomography (PET) to demonstrate that one hour of second-hand smoke in an enclosed space results in enough nicotine reaching the brain to bind receptors that are normally targeted by direct exposure to tobacco smoke. This happens in the brain of both smokers and non-smokers.
Previous research has shown that exposure to second-hand smoke increases the likelihood that children will become teenage smokers and makes it more difficult for adult smokers to quit.
Such associations suggest that second-hand smoke acts on the brain to promote smoking behaviour.
“These results show that even limited second-hand smoke exposure delivers enough nicotine to the brain to alter its function,” NIDA Director Nora D. Volkow, M.D., said.
“Chronic or severe exposure could result in even higher brain nicotine levels, which may explain why second-hand smoke exposure increases vulnerability to nicotine addiction,” she stated.
Arthur Brody, M.D., of the UCLA Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences and corresponding author for the article, said the study gives concrete evidence to support policies that ban smoking in public places, particularly enclosed spaces and around children.
The findings have been published in Archives of General Psychiatry. (ANI)
- Second-hand cigarette smoke associated with raised blood pressure in boys - May 02, 2011
- Cell phone use does affect brain but health consequences unknown - Feb 23, 2011
- Secondhand smoke exposure tied to psychiatric distress, illness - Jun 08, 2010
- Passive smoking can harm your unborn baby - Mar 10, 2011
- Tobacco smoking negatively affects teens' brains - Mar 03, 2011
- Outdoor second-hand smoke a new health hazard - Nov 19, 2009
- New technique points out cellular-level changes within deep brain regions - Jan 19, 2011
- Beware! Passive smoking riskier than you think (May 31 is World No Tobacco Day) - May 30, 2012
- World Environment Day (WED 2010): Smoke-free environment is a right - Jun 05, 2010
- All US workplaces could be smoke-free by 2020 - Apr 22, 2011
- Smoke-free public places law can protect kids from second hand smoke - Jun 07, 2010
- Brain imaging demonstrates that former smokers have greater willpower - Apr 27, 2011
- How anti-smoking drugs may curb cravings - Jan 04, 2011
- Tobacco carcinogen levels high in kids living with smokers - Nov 10, 2010
- Babies sleeping with smoker parents have thrice-higher nicotine levels - Mar 30, 2011
Tags: adult smokers, archives of general psychiatry, ban smoking in public places, biobehavioral sciences, concrete evidence, director nora, emission tomography, measurable impact, national institute on drug abuse, national institutes of health, nicotine addiction, nicotine levels, second hand smoke, smoke exposure, smoking behaviour, smoking in public places, teenage smokers, tobacco smoke, ucla department, volkow