Benefits of Nicotine

[ssjones]

This analysis of the pro's and cons of nicotine is pretty well balanced and interesting.

http://www.gwern.net/Nicotine
Since I had just smoked my pipe, I didn't bookmark the URL, I'll just remember it.

 

[mcitinner1]

Very interesting.

 

[jitterbugdude]

Odd the article didn't mention the 40% reduction in Alzheimer's nor the 70% reduction in Parkinson's.

The problem with most research on tobacco is that researchers fail to recognize that the "dose determines the poison". Of course I can make animals get cancer by making them smoke 5 packs a day.. but what about 5 single cigarettes a day?

 

[griffonwing]

For me, personally, I do not need a study (as in-depth and well written as this one seems to be) to tell me that I am not addicted to pipe smoking. Ive smoked a pipe 3-times daily for a couple years, and completely put it down for a couple months, with no need to pick it up.
As it so happens, the 2-month cease was for my mother, to prove to her that it was not addicting. She believed me afterwards. Heheh

 

[aldecaker]

My personal experience is that a nice relaxing pipe smoke is very healthy for some of the people at my work. It has prevented me from choking the crap out of a couple of them.

 

[settersbrace]

My personal experience is that a nice relaxing pipe smoke is very healthy for some of the people at my work. It has prevented me from choking the crap out of a couple of them.
A man who serves his country is a patriot. A man who serves his government is an employee. The two are not always the same thing.

This, exactly.

 

[deathmetal]

I need to send that URL around to all of my family and friends. At the very least, they can stop viewing smoking as something I do merely to irritate them.

 

[maxx]

Excellent article. Packed with links to research. Bookmarked it.
I first read in 1982 of a positive effect of nicotine in Steven Rose's book The Conscious Brain. It mimics acetylcholine. There's a link in the posted article on that topic from '97, but I haven't read it to see if this is wholly correct.

http://www.gwern.net/docs/nicotine/1998-levin.pdf

 

[captainprophesy]

I thought I read somewhere, or maybe I heard... Stephen King stated something along the lines that the nicotine (he smokes or smoked cigarettes) is what helped his creativity and helped him focus.
Im almost positive thats what it was... but I could be wrong.

 

[tarak]

Interesting, but I'm pretty sure many of those references wouldn't stand up to medical/scientific scrutiny. What qualifies as acceptable research is narrow.

 

[jitterbugdude]

It mimics acetylcholine

Actually, nicotine up regulates the nicotinic acetylecholine receptors in the brain. The very receptors that loose sensitivity and die as part of the Alzheimer's pathology.