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Mthandazo Ndlovu
Taking a stroll in our city we find quite a number of guys and girls, now being heavy smokers. I took time to chat with a few asking them of the dangers of smoking and its consequences, and they suggested it was the best thing to have during the Covid-19 era when no alcohol was available.
They said it made them “cool” and one guy said he now goes for plus twenty cigarettes a day, saying he felt weird if he did not smoke that much.
Tobacco is one of the most widely abused substances in the world. It is highly addictive with the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention estimating that tobacco has about six million deaths every year. This then makes tobacco the leading cause of preventable death.
So it’s one’s mandate to make sure that these preventable deaths are isolated and this can be done, by one never smoking in their lives.
Nicotine is the main addictive chemical in tobacco. It causes a rush of adrenaline when absorbed by the bloodstream or inhaled via cigarette smoke.
Nicotine also triggers an increase in the dopamine, this is referred to as the brain’s “happy” chemical. The dopamine level is what is needed by the guy going for 20 plus cigarettes a day trying to be in a happy mode.
Many times people indulge without knowledge of what will happen to them as they begin to smoke, your dopamine levels have a right to go low when things are not going well in your life, and when you begin to solve the issues at hand you will feel them rising and you get back to normalcy.
You don’t need any other substances to lighten you up.
Dopamine stimulates the area of the brain associated with pleasure and reward. Like any other drug, use of tobacco over time can cause physical and psychological addiction. This is also true for smokeless forms of tobacco such as snuff and chewing tobacco.
A tobacco addiction is harder to hide than any other addictions, hence we find some even taking a smoke break during sleep time. This is largely because tobacco is legal, easily obtained and can be consumed in public.
Some people smoke socially or occasionally, but others have become addicted. An addiction may be present if the person:
1. Cannot stop smoking or chewing despite attempts to quit.
2. Has withdrawal symptoms when they try to quit ( shaky hands, sweating, irritability, or a rapid heart rate.
3. Must smoke or chew after every meal or after a long time without using, such as after a movie or work meeting.
4. Needs tobacco to feel “normal” or turns to them when feeling stressed.
If you know someone or you need help contact +263772399734 OR email [email protected] and join the Rechabites and ICM in building drug-free and healthy communities.
Mthandazo Ndlovu is a drug and substance abuse specialist, an addictions counsellor, adolescent counsellor and professional counsellor.
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