Big Question 7 - What is Nicotine?
KEY SUMMARY POINTS
1
Nicotine is addictive – it is now widely acknowledged that the cause of most of the serious health risks associated with combustible cigarettes is the toxicants in the smoke produced when tobacco is burned – and not the nicotine.
2
The risk profile of nicotine itself has been widely researched and is not carcinogenic.
3
Nicotine should be used by adults only.
Fact: although nicotine is addictive, it is relatively harmless to health. It is the many other toxic chemicals contained in tobacco smoke that cause almost all the harm from smoking. Nicotine itself does not cause cancer, lung disease, heart disease or stroke and has been used safely for many years in medicines to help people stop smoking.
NHS
“Vaping myths and the facts” [1]
Nicotine is a naturally occurring organic compound found in its highest levels in tobacco plants, but it can also be found at much lower levels in other natural sources, including potatoes and tomatoes.[2]
The critical questions
For decades, consumer exposure to nicotine has mostly occurred via cigarette smoking. That is why the effects of smoking and nicotine tend to be conflated in many scientific studies, and in people’s minds.
