4 ms·

Nope, not physical addiction like with tobacco. There are many addictive things in tobacco products, but nicotine is not one of those.

by op00to 10y ago

_nalply 10y ago
Really? Some people report being addicted to nicotine patches. I don't believe anybody.
- aab0 10y ago
  All the anecdotes I've seen of being addicted to nicotine gum or patches have been of former smokers who were using them to try to quit. That's not necessarily nicotine being addictive so much as their pre-existing tobacco addiction latching onto a replacement.
- davymac 10y ago
  Non/Never-smoker here. I started taking Nicotine lozenges when I first heard about this a while back to self-medicate ADD/Depression (too poor to afford insurance, will have it in 60 days and this will stop). It works incredibly quickly, and incredibly well. I take it as needed, I've gone over a week without using it and it's not remotely an issue. Zero rebound depression. Definitely helps focus.
  - JustUhThought 10y ago
    Fascinating! Are there any studies that use the patch specifically for depression or even chronic fatigue like symptoms?
whamlastxmas 10y ago
This is tremendously surprising. Does this mean that e-cigs that are just nicotine with some flavor and a binding liquid of some sort aren't addictive?
- aisenik 10y ago
  Anecdotally, it's similar to caffeine. Nicotine on its own has proven a mild stimulant with minimal addictive effect. I like it, I want it, but mostly it is not something I think about.
  - robotresearcher 10y ago
    But caffeine causes strong unpleasant withdrawal symptoms if you quit cold-turkey...
- marpstar 10y ago
  in my experience, it's still habit forming, though it really helped me to get off of cigarettes. I don't vape anymore (switched to snus) because it was ridiculously inconvenient. Too much gear to purchase and maintain and the products available in my city are either low quality or overpriced.
gh02t 10y ago
Where are you getting that nicotine is not addictive? Everything I've ever read and can find searching says it is quite addictive, even by itself. It also definitely counts as "physically" addictive by the medical definition, i.e. it causes harmful side effects if you stop using it. I'm not saying you're wrong for sure as I'm not an expert, but can you provide some evidence to back it up since this contradicts everything I've ever seen?
- xkcd-sucks 10y ago
  Current thinking is that nicotine isn't "addictive" unless coadministered with monoamine oxidase inhibitors, which happen to be present in tobacco
  - tcj_phx 10y ago
    > Current thinking is that nicotine isn't "addictive" unless coadministered with monoamine oxidase inhibitors, which happen to be present in tobacco This is a most-helpful comment. Thanks! I commented earlier today [1], in another submission, that nicotine is rather similar to Niacin (Vitamin B3). Niacinamide has helps my girlfriend reduce her tobacco usage... [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12526802 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12526802 The first anti-depressants were MAOI's. Some of them caused a serious side effects (high blood pressure) when the patient consumed fine aged cheese at the same time. When the SSRI patents came into effect patients were switched to the new drugs, but not because the SSRI's worked especially well.

Nope, not physical addiction like with tobacco. There are many addictive things in tobacco products, but nicotine is not one of those.

by op00to 10y ago

Nope, not physical addiction like with tobacco. There are many addictive things in tobacco products, but nicotine is not one of those.

_nalply 10y ago

Really? Some people report being addicted to nicotine patches. I don't believe anybody.

aab0 10y ago
All the anecdotes I've seen of being addicted to nicotine gum or patches have been of former smokers who were using them to try to quit. That's not necessarily nicotine being addictive so much as their pre-existing tobacco addiction latching onto a replacement.
davymac 10y ago
Non/Never-smoker here. I started taking Nicotine lozenges when I first heard about this a while back to self-medicate ADD/Depression (too poor to afford insurance, will have it in 60 days and this will stop). It works incredibly quickly, and incredibly well. I take it as needed, I've gone over a week without using it and it's not remotely an issue. Zero rebound depression. Definitely helps focus.
- JustUhThought 10y ago
  Fascinating! Are there any studies that use the patch specifically for depression or even chronic fatigue like symptoms?

whamlastxmas 10y ago

This is tremendously surprising. Does this mean that e-cigs that are just nicotine with some flavor and a binding liquid of some sort aren't addictive?

aisenik 10y ago
Anecdotally, it's similar to caffeine. Nicotine on its own has proven a mild stimulant with minimal addictive effect. I like it, I want it, but mostly it is not something I think about.
- robotresearcher 10y ago
  But caffeine causes strong unpleasant withdrawal symptoms if you quit cold-turkey...
marpstar 10y ago
in my experience, it's still habit forming, though it really helped me to get off of cigarettes. I don't vape anymore (switched to snus) because it was ridiculously inconvenient. Too much gear to purchase and maintain and the products available in my city are either low quality or overpriced.

gh02t 10y ago

Where are you getting that nicotine is not addictive? Everything I've ever read and can find searching says it is quite addictive, even by itself. It also definitely counts as "physically" addictive by the medical definition, i.e. it causes harmful side effects if you stop using it. I'm not saying you're wrong for sure as I'm not an expert, but can you provide some evidence to back it up since this contradicts everything I've ever seen?

xkcd-sucks 10y ago
Current thinking is that nicotine isn't "addictive" unless coadministered with monoamine oxidase inhibitors, which happen to be present in tobacco
- tcj_phx 10y ago
  > Current thinking is that nicotine isn't "addictive" unless coadministered with monoamine oxidase inhibitors, which happen to be present in tobacco This is a most-helpful comment. Thanks! I commented earlier today [1], in another submission, that nicotine is rather similar to Niacin (Vitamin B3). Niacinamide has helps my girlfriend reduce her tobacco usage... [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12526802 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12526802 The first anti-depressants were MAOI's. Some of them caused a serious side effects (high blood pressure) when the patient consumed fine aged cheese at the same time. When the SSRI patents came into effect patients were switched to the new drugs, but not because the SSRI's worked especially well.