Is Smoking Nicotine a Gateway for Cocaine Use?
Many individuals smoke nicotine, it’s legal after all. But does smoking nicotine become a gateway for cocaine addiction? New research indicates that this may be the case: nicotine and cocaine alter the brain’s dopamine levels in very similar ways. Reports indicate that the ongoing presence of nicotine often makes the brain more susceptible to the effects of cocaine and prepares the ground for cocaine addiction.
Almost every substance that could possibly trigger physical dependence and addiction achieves its basic effects by artificially hiking levels of dopamine inside the brain. Some substances increase dopamine levels by directly accumulating dopamine output in certain neurons; while others hike dopamine levels by blocking the recycling process that normally breaks the chemical down into parts. Also, some substances significantly increase dopamine levels by engaging in both of these activities simultaneously. It is interesting to note that nicotine, cocaine, and other addictive substances similarly alter the levels of dopamine and other neurotransmitters by either blocking normal activity at neuron receptor sites or mimicking neurotransmitters and plugging into those receptor sites.
A recent study published in 2011 in the Journal of Neuroscience, indicates that a single cigarette releases enough nicotine into the body to trigger dopamine increases that can last for several days. The study shows that over time, repeated smoking of nicotine can lead to two important alterations in specific brain regions. The first of these changes is increased dopamine levels which produce the pleasurable sensations that begin a smoker down the path to addiction. Also, the presence of nicotine can alter memory and learning, encouraging a pattern of learned behavior that supports smoking in the future. Importantly, the study also shows that nicotine achieves part of its effects by chemically activating the same dopamine receptors that get activated by cocaine.
Most people begin with smoking nicotine and then later begin abusing cocaine. Many doctors and researchers used to consider this to be a useless piece of information: common knowledge they may say. But, a new study by the Journal Science Translational Medicine published in 2012, says that the long-term presence of nicotine in the brain essentially strengthens the brain’s response to cocaine. This intensified response to cocaine by the brain means that those who “try” cocaine will more likely become addicted to using it. Importantly, the study also reports that while smoking increases the risks for cocaine abuse and addiction, cocaine abuse and addiction do not increase the risks for smoking.