What is Tobacco?

Tobacco is a plant leaf which is treated – dried, cured and aged – before being processed and manufactured into cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco, and wet and dry snuff.

Tobacco naturally contains Nicotine, the substance that Tobacco is known for and to which a tobacco user becomes addicted. Nicotine is a Stimulant – it speeds up the nervous system.

Where does it come from?

Tobacco comes from the leaves of the Tobacco plant, Nicotiana Tabacum and Nicotiana Rustica. The leaves are dried, cured and aged before being manufactured into various Tobacco products, the most popular of which being Cigarettes.

Where, Why & How is it Used?

The main chemical in tobacco is Nicotine, which is a stimulant drug.

There are various forms of tobacco – Cigarettes, pipes and cigars where the tobacco leaf is burned and the smoke inhaled, chewing tobacco, and snuff – wet snuff is typically placed between the gum and cheek and left there for the nicotine to absorb through the mouth, and dry snuff is often snorted or sniffed.

Nicotine gives a short burst of euphoria and nervous system and brain stimulation before feelings of relaxation. Though some of the effects of smoking tobacco are pleasant, Nicotine is addictive – people using tobacco will quickly develop a tolerance to the drug, needing to use more to get the same effect.

Though often people are physically dependent on tobacco – that is, their body is used to operating with the drug there – they can also become psychologically dependent on the drug.

Often smoking becomes a habit, and smokers may use tobacco with their morning cup of coffee, when reading the newspaper, or any other time when they would normally smoke whether or not they crave a cigarette physically.

It can sometimes also become linked with socialising, as taking a smoke break (or smoko) can be a good opportunity to talk to friends who also smoke.

Short Term Effects

Soon after tobacco has been used, the person may experience the following effects:

• Initial stimulation and then relaxation of the brain and nervous system
• Enhanced alertness and concentration
• Mild euphoria
• An increase in blood pressure and heart rate
• Decreased blood flow to body extremities ( hands and feet) and decreased skin temperature
• Bad breath and decreased appetite
• Dizziness, Nausea, Abdominal cramping and vomiting
• Headache
• Coughing due to smoke irritation of the lungs and throat.

People who are new to smoking tobacco, and people who suddenly smoke more than they are used to, may experience more unpleasant side effects.

Once it enters the bloodstream (which is very rapidly if smoked in a cigarette) it reaches the brain in about 10-19 seconds.

Nicotine triggers dopamine release in the brain – this is a chemical that makes you feel good. Heavy and repeated use of nicotine triggers dopamine in the part of the brain that controls things like feeling good in response to food or sex. This part of the brain is also triggered by other addictive drugs such as amphetamines and cocaine – this is thought to be one of the reasons why nicotine is very addictive.

Most of the nicotine (about 80%) is broken down in the liver. It is also filtered from the blood through the kidneys and removed in urine.

After stopping smoking:

12 Hours Later

Almost all the nicotine is out of the body

24 Hours Later

Carbon Monoxide levels are reduced and more oxygen is in the bloodstream

Five Days Later:

Most of the nicotine by-products are gone from the body, and the sense of taste and smell will have improved

One Month Later

Blood pressure has returned to normal, and the immune system is beginning to recover

Three Months Later

Blood flow to the hands and feet has improved

One Year Later

The increased risk of dying from heart disease is half that of a person who continues to smoke

Long Term Effects

Though nicotine by itself is not strongly associated with the chronic diseases caused by smoking, it is responsible for the addictive effect. Tobacco smoke contains more than 4000 chemicals, many of which are carcinogenic – this means they cause cancer. Tobacco smoke contains 69 known carcinogens.

Long term smoking is by far the greatest cause of lung cancer. It is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths for Australian men, and second most common cause of cancer-related death for Australian Women (second only to breast cancer).

It is estimated that smoking is responsible for 88% for all lung cancer deaths in men over 35, and 75% in women of the same age. (Scollo and Winstanley, 2008) Smoking has also been liked to other forms of cancer, including:

• Laryngeal (voice box) cancer
• Mouth and throat cancer
• Pancreatic cancer
• Stomach cancer
• Kidney, Liver, Bladder and Bowel cancer
• Cervical cancer

Smoking is also responsible for many respiratory (breathing) and cardiovascular (heart and blood flow) diseases, including stroke and heart attack. Tobacco smoke contains carbon monoxide, a poisonous gas that competes with oxygen in the blood. Carbon Monoxide attaches itself to red blood cells, making it very difficult for the body to carry oxygen. Too much carbon monoxide is rapidly fatal.

It also affects reproductive health – women smokers are twice as likely to be infertile (unable to have a baby) as women who do not smoke, and women who smoke and take the oral contraceptive pill are at risk of developing heart disease.  Smoking should be avoided during pregnancy as smoking may lessen the oxygen supply to the baby.

Women who smoke are at higher risk of spontaneous miscarriage. Smoking also affects the quality and volume of breast milk, and mothers who smoke are more likely to wean their children earlier than non-smoking mothers.

For men, smoking may be associated with a lower sperm count and volume, and men may also be at risk of erectile dysfunction (unable to have or maintain an erection). Fertility treatments on men are also less likely to succeed if they smoke.

Smoking is also associated with various dental and eye diseases, including gingivitis and cataracts. Smokers are more likely to develop respiratory (lung and throat) and other infections, are at increased risk of catching tuberculosis (TB), and the risk of catching influenza (the flu) is several times higher for smokers than non-smokers.

Dependency

The main chemical in tobacco (nicotine) is very addictive. As previously discussed, nicotine triggers the release of dopamine, which gives the smoker a good feeling, making it more difficult to quit.

People can be physically dependent, psychologically dependent, or both at once. People who are physically dependent feel cravings for the drug and may experience withdrawal symptoms when they stop smoking. People who are psychologically dependent may find themselves wanting to smoke in specific situations where they have smoked before, such as at the pub, with friends, or when doing a particular activity such as reading the paper.

Withdrawal symptoms include:

• Cravings
• Irritability, agitation, depression and anxiety
• Insomnia, changed sleep patterns, restlessness and loss of concentration
• Increased appetite and weight gain
• Headaches, body aches and pains
• Coughing, sore throat, and stomach and bowel upsets.

Quitting

Many people who try to quit smoking do so without assistance, but the chances of success are much greater when a person has help.

There are various methods for quitting, but combining them seems to be more effective than any single method alone. Methods include:

• Going ‘Cold Turkey’ – Immediately stopping smoking without first reducing intake or using any other nicotine source
• Nicotine Replacement therapy (Such as a nicotine patch or gum)
• Individual counselling or advice
• Other pharmacotherapies, like bupropion
• Support groups
• Alternative therapies such as acupuncture and hypnosis
• Weaning – gradually reducing the amount smoked each day until eventually the smoker stops

Other Risks/Consequences

Because Tobacco is not classified as either a drug or a food in Australia, there are no standards or controls on what can be used when growing the tobacco plants. This means that tobacco growers are free to use any kind of additive or chemical they wish.

Herbicides, insecticides, fungicides, fertilisers and other such chemicals are commonly used in tobacco growing.

During the manufacturing of cigarettes, chemicals and additives are also used. Sugar, honey, cocoa are often used to add flavour, menthol to soothe the raw throat from smoking, and in some cases ammonium salts and acetaldehyde (or Ethanal – the same toxic chemical produced with the breakdown of alcohol in the liver) are used to increase the addictive potential of the nicotine.

Growers and manufacturers are not obligated to list what chemicals or additives they use on the package, so you never know what you’re smoking.

The tar in cigarettes not only coats the lungs and causes lung and throat cancer – it also can stain the mouth, teeth and fingers of a smoker, turning them an unpleasant yellow-brown colour.

There is little difference between regular cigarettes and ‘light’ or ‘low tar’ cigarettes – a smoker will inhale the same amount of chemicals. Individual smokers tend to have a preferred level of nicotine in their body – smokers will adjust the frequency and depth of their puffs to control the amount of nicotine they inhale. A smoker who switches to light cigarettes after using regular strength habitually will inhale more frequently and deeply to maintain the same level of nicotine in their body.

Smoking tobacco also contributes a risk to other people (including non-smokers) in the form of passive smoking. Passive smoking is the smoke from the end of the cigarette, and the smoke which is breathed out from the smoker’s lungs.

This smoke can be breathed in by people other than the person smoking, and can pose a health risk.

It is estimated that people who never smoke but live with a smoker have a 30% increase in the risk of developing lung cancer when compared to people who never smoke and live with a non-smoker. Passive smoking also contributes significantly to the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

Smoking Video

This short video takes a look at the affects of smoking – ashtray warning!

In Tasmania

• In 2004, 22% of Tasmanians aged over 14 were daily smokers.
• Though nationally the rates had declined, in Tasmania between 2001 and 2004 the rates of daily smoking had increased among those aged 14-19 from 11% to 17%.
• Between 2001 and 2004, the prevalence of daily smokers increased in the 14-19, 40-49, and 60+ age groups. This increase was greatest in the 14-19 and 40-49 age groups, increasing from 11.4% to 17.2% and 19.1% to 27.8% respectively.
• In 2004, the prevalence for daily smoking in both males and females is greater in Tasmania than nationally, with 22.0% in Tasmania and 18.6% Nationally for Males, and 21.0% in Tasmania and 16.0% Nationally for Females.
• Figures suggest that smoking has declined nationally (from 23.1% in 2001 to 20.6% in 2004), but has stayed the same in Tasmania (24.3% in 2001, 24.1% in 2004)

(Bruno et al. 2007)