Key Takeaways
- Nicotine has short-term cognitive benefits, including improved memory, focus, attention span, and fine motor skills.
- Increased blood pressure and heart rate, constricted blood vessels, and affected brain development in younger users are linked to nicotine use.
- Even without tobacco, nicotine is highly addictive.
Nicotine is having a moment in the wellness world right now.
Wellness and health influencers are talking about nicotine through a different lens than most people are used to, praising it as a nootropic – a product that can enhance cognitive performance.
As a board-certified addiction medicine and family medicine physician with Rochester Regional Health, Ritchie DeVasser, MD, FASAM, understands nicotine and its effects on the body well. He explains how nicotine affects the body, the risks and benefits of using the substance, and what you should consider before trying it.
Risks of nicotine and tobacco use
When people talk about how nicotine affects your body, they are framing it in a way that is a safer alternative than using tobacco products.
Inhaling tobacco smoke has been proven to raise the risk of significant complications for the heart and lungs, along with increasing cancer risk and lung damage. If you are switching from smoking cigarettes or cigars to a nicotine-only option, technically the switch would be reducing your health risk in comparison.
Benefits of nicotine use
For people who are using nicotine as a patch, gum, pouch, lozenge or spray, the positive effects on cognitive are short-lived but helpful.
Research shows nicotine can help with:
- Boosted memory function
- Sharper attention span
- Increased focus
- Improved fine motor skills
All the same, the effects of nicotine typically wear off within 1 ½ to 2 hours.
“These are not sustained effects,” Dr. DeVasser said. “The benefits are short-lived and it doesn't take away from the risks of nicotine in regard to dependence and other negative health effects.”
Risks of nicotine use
Even without using tobacco, people who use nicotine see its effects on the cardiovascular system and brain development.
Research shows using nicotine raises blood pressure and heart rate and constricts blood vessels.
For adolescents and young adults, nicotine is also shown to affect brain development.
Nicotine also increases the risk of
- fetal complications in pregnant patients
- increased anxiety
- increased mood disturbances
“Just because it’s not tobacco smoke doesn’t mean it’s safe,” Dr. DeVasser said.
Is nicotine safe to use?
Even without tobacco, nicotine is still a very addictive substance. It stimulates and releases chemical messengers called neurotransmitters in your brain that reinforce nicotine use.
“People may be hearing things on the Internet or podcasts where nicotine is being described as, ‘This really helped me’ or ‘I was able to perform better while taking nicotine’ or ‘Before I go to the gym, I take one of these and I can work out better’ and so forth. People can get caught up in nicotine use quickly and not even realize they are becoming dependent on the substance until it’s too late,” Dr. DeVasser said.
When the effects of nicotine wear off, the feeling of withdrawal that sets in can lead to a dependence.
“Nicotine is highly addictive, it has side effects – even when it is not combined with tobacco – and has profound effects on the brain and body,” Dr. DeVasser said. “If you haven’t tried nicotine, I would recommend you never try nicotine.”
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