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READ THIS BEFORE YOU TAKE A HIT
by Emilia Newe (19 July 2024)
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To try once or to not try?
Finally graduating high school and entering university feels like a breath of fresh air. With a new environment comes with new friendship circles and a load of random strangers. The first week of getting to know everyone is difficult, but parties help mitigate the initial awkwardness floating in the air like dust.
“Try once, your parents won’t know”
Just one inhale of the vape you tell yourself.
“Vaping is so common, it must be nice”
Your reaction could go in 3 ways:
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No thanks never again.
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I don’t mind it.
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Wow let me continue.
Most people end up at option 1, the end result being abstinence. A portion of people end up at option 2, where they vape for fun in social settings, hence being named as recreational. Finally, a small portion of people end up at option 3, eventually leading to dependence.
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In fact, vaping is so common that 2.1 million students in the US vape (CDC, 2024).
While I could go on about the mechanisms revolving all three stages, I particularly want to focus on ‘dependence’ which can ultimately lead to addiction. As a pharmacology student, understanding how drug addictions develop and its harmful effects has prevented me in entering the ‘experimental’ phase. Hence, I would like to spread my knowledge to inform the youth about what goes on in their bodies before they experiment with different substances of abuse.
Definitions
Substance of abuse - “The use of illegal drugs or the use of prescription or over-the-counter drugs or alcohol for purposes other than those for which they are meant to be used, or in excessive amounts.” ~ National Cancer Institute
Addiction - “Chronic, relapsing disorder characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use despite adverse consequences.” ~ National Institute on Drug Abuse
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What makes vaping so addicting?
Vapes contain a substance — nicotine. Once inhaled, nicotine travels to the brain where it attaches to its receptor. Think of nicotine as the button, and the receptor is the slit. Once these nicotine receptors are activated, a bunch of hormones are released. An important hormone associated with addiction is dopamine — the 'feel good' hormone. The dopamine reward pathway located in the mid brain plays an important role in generating those pleasurable feelings, such as the ‘high’ and induce relaxation.
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How does one get addicted?
In times of stress, people may vape as a coping tool. However, they will continuously pick up the gadget subconsciously, eventually relying on it to deal with negative emotions. As the exposure to nicotine increases, changes begin to occur in the brain. The number of nicotine receptors (the button slits) starts to increase, meaning that more nicotine needs to be consumed to release dopamine. As mentioned earlier, dopamine is what induces the pleasurable feeling, hence drug dependence stems from craving that ‘feel good’ feeling as the number of receptors rises. Similarly, dependence on other drugs of abuse such as weed & cocaine also utilise the same mechanism, where receptor number increases.
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This is also known as synaptic plasticity, where changes occur in synapses (junctions between neurones)
Treatment?
Addiction can take weeks, months, or even years to resolve. If nicotine is abruptly taken away from an addict, they experience withdrawal symptoms (e.g. frustration, insomnia, depression). Methods such as therapy or nicotine replacement products may help mitigate the symptoms, however the best ‘treatment’ for vaping addiction is to not pick it up to begin with.
While experimenting with different substances may seem intriguing, it is vital to understand its harmful long term effects. Although trying it once won’t necessarily lead to dependence, do think twice before you pick it up.
Seek help if you find yourself unable to continue daily tasks without vaping and/or using substances, For more treatment options,
References
CDC (2024). E-Cigarette Use Among Youth. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/e-cigarettes/youth.html#:~:text=Among%20students%20who%20currently%20used,%25)%20used%20flavored%20e%2Dcigarettes. (Accessed: 19 July 2024).
National Cancer Institute (2022). Handling Nicotine Withdrawal and Triggers When You Decide To Quit Tobacco. Available at:
https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/tobacco/withdrawal-fact-sheet#what-can-i-do-about-nicotine-cravings-after-i-quit (Accessed: 18 July 2024).
National Institute on Drug Abuse (2011). Drug Misuse and Addiction. Available at: https://nida.nih.gov/publications/drugs-brains-behavior-science-addiction/drug-misuse-addiction#:~:text=What%20is%20drug%20addiction%3F,stress%2C%20and%20self%2Dcontrol. (Accessed: 19 July 2024).
Truth Initiative (2022). Nicotine use and stress. Available at:
https://truthinitiative.org/research-resources/emerging-tobacco-products/nicotine-use-and-stress (Accessed: 18 July 2024).
Volkow, N.D., Michaelides, M., Baler, R. (2019). ‘The Neuroscience of Drug Reward and Addiction’, Physiological Reviews, 99(4), pp.2115-2140. doi: 10.1152/physrev.00014.2018.