Questions about cigarettes
What effect does the nicotine in tobacco have on the body?
Your blood pressure, pulse rate and bowel activity are all increased after smoking, but the main effect is that the nicotine is chemically addictive and has subtle, mood-enhancing effects on the brain.
In fact, when you smoke, your brain actually grows extra receptors which thrive on nicotine and get used to having it regularly. When you quit, these receptors are deprived of the nicotine they need. This is why you sometimes have strong cravings for a cigarette that threaten to overwhelm your willpower. It takes time for your brain to return to normal and, in the meantime, you will probably also experience withdrawal symptoms such as anxiety, irritability, fatigue and hunger.
Are lights/low-tar cigarettes better for me than the regular kind?
No. Although machines used to test cigarettes draw less tar and nicotine from low-tar brands, real smokers don’t – instead, they either smoke more of them or inhale more deeply, to get the same effect.
In fact, these terms are so misleading they’ve been banned from cigarette packs. By smoking less or switching to light cigarettes, you're still putting tar into your lungs and more than 4,000 chemicals and toxins into your body. The only solution is to give up tobacco altogether – whether it’s cigarettes, chewing tobacco or cigars.
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