What’s with the nicotine nootropics science that I keep hearing about? Well, its pretty complicated, but I can explain. Just stay with me my friends.
Millions of people set out to quit smoking every day. And well, sadly, lots of them fail. You might be one of them. Failing to quit smoking often results in a more amplified version of your former smoking self. Failure is stressful and with stress comes anxiety and with anxiety comes the craving to smoke. The entire unhealthy situation is dangerously cyclical.
Many people come to my blog asking if a nootropic can help them quit nicotine. The answer is yes, the nicotine nootropics connection to quit smoking most definitely exists, but the reason why is complicated and sometimes confusing. Many people buy our top nootropic supplements for the singular purpose of quitting smoking and they often tout the results. Results will vary, of course, and are largely dependant on someone’s dedication to quitting smoking. No supplement will alleviate side effects in full or even turn down the volume on some of them, but a good nootropic paired with nicotine withdrawal can certainly blunt some of the agonies.
But first, in order to understand the nicotine nootropics connection, let’s get the bad news.
Nicotine Nootropics Connection – Nicotine Is a Nootropic
There has been a lot of controversies raised over the years regarding the nicotine nootropics connection. Some smart drug blogs have touted the use of nicotine as a nootropic. This is dangerous and murky territory that could influence a person desperate for a brain boost to begin smoking. In fairness, most of the blogs tell you up front that they aren’t recommending such things. But the messaging still has a lot of people extremely confused.
Smoking is bad. Tobacco, when smoked, exposes your lungs to thousands upon thousands of chemicals. Cigarret companies often make use of chemicals (or at least, they did) that stimulate increased nicotine addiction as a way to create more loyal customers. Big tobacco was never dumb in their approach and they still aren’t.
But the fact is, nicotine and tobacco are wholly different deals. But we’ve largely paired them as one item for decades now.
What Is Nicotine
Nicotine is a chemical that’s core competency in this world involves protecting plants from enemy bugs. Bugs eat plants. Plants don’t want to be eaten, so they deploy the chemical nicotine to save them. Nicotine’s chemical makeup largely resembles that of caffeine, another drug that’s often confused with its transporter, coffee. Nicotine is found in high-density in tobacco (obviously), but it is also found in nightshades like eggplants and potatoes.
Humans can endure ingesting nicotine because of our physical size. When a human ingests nicotine in any capacity, the nicotine binds with the brains nicotinic receptors. This influences memory and motor function and even our pleasure realm. In other words, in some ways, a correct dose of nicotine might make us smarter.
Studies have shown that people who wear nicotine patches were able to avert ADD symptoms during long tasks. It has also been shown that nicotine may boost the memory.
Nicotine has also been shown to reduce out cravings for food.
Yes, nicotine is a nootropic. But what does that ultimately mean for the smoker?
Nicotine Addictive Nature Collapses Its Potential
Nicotine is infamous for being toxically addictive. It is one of the most addictive substances on earth. The fact that it is predominantly transported through harsh, cancer-causing tobacco worsens the situation of nicotine addiction to incredibly dangerous levels. If you are currently addicted to nicotine, you know full well the incredibly harsh journey that is quitting.
Due to this, the nicotine nootropics concept is blow wide open as illogical. In other words, using nicotine as a nootropic has far greater pitfalls than it does benefits. Even if you were to utilize patches, you’d still be mega-addicted to those patches. That would mean incredible cost and inconvenience for a potential lifetime.
Joe Rogan falsely claimed on his famous podcast back in 2016 that nicotine could be used as a non-addictive nootropic.
Ask anyone who wears a nicotine patch if they buy into such suggestions and I think you will find Rogan’s claim to be false. Although we do love Joe Rogan and his support of nootropics around here, taking up vaping or smoking or patching of nicotine for smart drug purposes is absolutely irresponsible and costly. There are lots of great nootropics on the market today, none of which are addictive in the slightest.
But what if the nicotine nootropics connection could play to our benefit? Well, turns out, it can.
Nootropic Use Can Help Alleviate Symptoms Of Nicotine Addiction
If you’ve ever read my nootropics reviews, you know I’m a big fan of nootropic usage in general (at least, the good ones). Nootropics can help reduce anxiety, improve productivity through increased focus, and help alleviate symptoms of ADHD. But they can also help someone struggling with nicotine addiction overcome the initial stages of their harsh journey.
Because so much of nicotine addiction is based on nootropic chemistry, it would make sense that utilizing a nootropic could vastly improve your chances of quitting.
Nootropics can help mitigate feelings of anxiety that are often extremely strong following smoking cessation. Another terrible nicotine withdrawal symptom is lack of focus, something that a top nootropic can certainly help with. Many people go back to smoking simply for the fact that they have too much trouble being productive at work. Not being able to focus and being anxious is a trap that leads people right back to the Marlboro man.
Nootropics are a key to helping reduce these two issues.
How much reduction in smoking cessation side effects will someone who takes a nootropic experience? That, my friends, is subject and will vary from person to person, but most people who do it say it works to at least some small degree. When it comes to smoking, every edge, no matter how small it may turn out to be, certainly helps.
Which Nootropics Work Best For Smoking Cessation?
I’m a fan of combination nootropics like those found on my best nootropics list. I believe you get more impact, more potency, and more value by going such ways. But it isn’t essential and some people prefer trying simpler methods first. I get it. I prefer Mind Ignite for a nootropic supplement, it is potent, dependable, and relatively affordable. Below are the ones I prefer for just single ingredients. You can find them at GNC or Whole Foods.
L-Theanine: L-Theanine is an amino acid commonly found in green tea leaves. You’ve probably heard people proclaim that “green tea caffeine is a gentler form of caffeine.” Well, that’s not true. What people experience when they switch out coffee for green tea is the presence of L-Theanine, which serves to take the mental edge off of sometimes harsh caffeine effects.
For smokers, L-Theanine’s proven ability to lower anxiety and increase focus can really serve to help those battling smoking cessation side effects.
Rhodiola Rosea: This adaptogenic herb was taken even dating back to ancient times. It helps give you focus, increases memory, and can even boost your mood. Many people who have quit caffeine or smoking have reported outstanding results with Rhodiola rosea. A 2011 study concluded that “our data encourage additional studies to define the use of R. rosea L. as a therapeutic approach in the treatment of smoking cessation.”
Conclusion
The nicotine nootropics connection is real. However, using nicotine as a nootropic is illogical and dangerous considering that so many great nootropics that aren’t addictive exist. Because nicotine exhibits nootropic-like chemistry on the user, a quality nootropic can certainly help in alleviating withdrawals suffered from smoking cessation.
