For many people, tobacco is an escape from everyday stress and anxiety. They believe that smoking brings them comfort and helps them cope with the various moments of tension and/or nervousness they face.
However, the truth is that tobacco has a considerable influence on the mind and emotional health, as we will see throughout this article.
Our brains face a whirlwind of emotions when we smoke
First of all, let us define tobacco dependence. It is simply “an addiction to consuming tobacco products, caused by the presence of nicotine, a psychoactive substance (alkaloid) found in the leaves of the tobacco plant”.
The Portuguese National Health Service (SNS) also adds that “smoking is the greatest avoidable health risk and the leading cause of premature death in the EU, accounting for almost 700,000 deaths a year.”
The process is simple: when we smoke, nicotine quickly enters the central nervous system, creating an immediate impact.
This same substance stimulates the release of dopamine, the neurotransmitter associated with feelings of pleasure and reward, creating a temporary sense of well-being and relief.
This chemical reaction explains why smoking seems to relieve anxiety, even if only momentarily.
The truth is that this pleasure is superficial and short-lived. What also happens is that, as the body adapts, you need to smoke more and more to continue feeling pleasure.
From pleasure to nicotine-induced anxiety
This is how, as explained above, a vicious cycle of dependence develops.
From that point onwards, the individual feels the need to consume more and more tobacco, which creates stress and establishes a link between not having a cigarette and the increased anxiety caused by the absence of nicotine.
However, we cannot deny that a cigarette provides immediate relief, yet it has the opposite effect in the long term.
Although nicotine causes momentary pleasure, withdrawal from it results in symptoms such as anxiety and irritability, which affect the smoker’s mental health and can cause harm.
7 direct effects of tobacco on your health
In addition to the harmful effects on mental health that we have already discussed, smoking has a number of serious physical drawbacks that manifest themselves in the development of certain diseases.
- Smoking is directly linked to respiratory diseases such as chronic bronchitis and emphysema;
- It considerably increases the risk of cancer, especially lung cancer;
- The risk of heart disease and strokes is higher, as nicotine and other substances present in tobacco also affect the cardiovascular system;
- It reduces quality of life and average life expectancy in the long term, owing to the damage caused by tobacco;
- It harms the appearance of the skin, accelerating ageing and increasing the formation of wrinkles;
- It affects taste and smell, making them less acute;
- It causes bad breath, which can lead to reduced self-esteem.
As you now know, the drawbacks of tobacco go beyond mental health issues and affect every system and organ in our bodies.
But does smoking really help with anxiety?
It is a fact that many people turn to cigarettes when they feel anxious or stressed.
Smoking becomes an easy way to deal with emotional discomfort and a way to "calm" the nervous system.
Several studies have been carried out on the impact of tobacco on mental health, and one of them, which we found on Cochrane, showed that people who stopped smoking had lower rates of new cases of anxiety and depression compared with those who continued to smoke.
Do not be fooled: what initially seems to be a solution for relieving stress is, in reality, a trap that only makes the problem worse.
A paradox: tobacco and mental health
Nicotine alters the levels of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin, which are fundamental to our emotional state.
When we smoke, it causes fluctuations in the brain’s chemical balance, which can intensify symptoms of anxiety and depression.
This is why stopping smoking has positive long-term effects on mental health, improving emotional well-being and quality of life.
Reduce anxiety and improve your quality of life
If you are looking to stop smoking and find the calm and serenity you need in your daily life, there are some forms of support you can rely on that you may not know about.
Our Easy programme helps you manage anxiety without resorting to tobacco or harmful substances, and break free from tobacco addiction through a holistic transformation.
Combat anxiety with well-being and whatever makes you happy! Count on me during this transformation and get in touch.