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From: NIH news releases and news items [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
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Sent: May 02, 2011 16:26
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Subject: MODERATE LEVELS OF SECONDHAND SMOKE DELIVER NICOTINE TO THE BRAIN
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH NIH News
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) <http://www.nida.nih.gov/>
Embargoed for Release, Monday, May 2, 2011, 4:00 PM EDT
CONTACT: NIDA Press Office, 301-443-6245, <e-mail:[log in to unmask]>
MODERATE LEVELS OF SECONDHAND SMOKE DELIVER NICOTINE TO THE BRAIN
NIH-funded study shows how secondhand smoke may increase vulnerability to
nicotine addiction
Exposure to secondhand smoke, such as a person can get by riding in an
enclosed car while someone else smokes, has a direct, measurable impact on
the brain-and the effect is similar to what happens in the brain of the
person doing the smoking. In fact, exposure to this secondhand smoke evokes
cravings among smokers, according to a study funded by the National
Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health.
The study, published today in Archives of General Psychiatry, used positron
emission tomography (PET) to demonstrate that one hour of secondhand smoke
in an enclosed space results in enough nicotine reaching the brain to bind
receptors that are normally targeted by direct exposure to tobacco smoke.
This happens in the brain of both smokers and non-smokers.
Previous research has shown that exposure to secondhand smoke increases the
likelihood that children will become teenage smokers and makes it more
difficult for adult smokers to quit. Such associations suggest that
secondhand smoke acts on the brain to promote smoking behavior.
"These results show that even limited secondhand smoke exposure delivers
enough nicotine to the brain to alter its function," said NIDA Director Nora
D. Volkow, M.D. "Chronic or severe exposure could result in even higher
brain nicotine levels, which may explain why secondhand smoke exposure
increases vulnerability to nicotine addiction."
"This study gives concrete evidence to support policies that ban smoking in
public places, particularly enclosed spaces and around children," said
Arthur Brody, M.D., of the UCLA Department of Psychiatry & Biobehavioral
Sciences and corresponding author for the article.
The Surgeon General's Report concluded in 2006 that secondhand smoke causes
heart disease and lung cancer in nonsmoking adults and many serious health
conditions in children, including sudden infant death syndrome, respiratory
infections, and more severe asthma. According to the CDC, almost 50,000
deaths per year can be attributed to secondhand smoke. For more information
or for resources to help quit smoking, go to
<http://www.nida.nih.gov/DrugPages/Nicotine.html>.
The study can be found online at: <http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org/>.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse is a component of the National
Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIDA
supports most of the world's research on the health aspects of drug abuse
and addiction. The Institute carries out a large variety of programs to
inform policy and improve practice. Fact sheets on the health effects of
drugs of abuse and information on NIDA research and other activities can be
found on the NIDA home page at <http://www.drugabuse.gov>. To order
publications in English or Spanish, call NIDA's new DrugPubs research
dissemination center at 1-877-NIDA-NIH or 240-645-0228 (TDD) or fax or email
requests to 240-645-0227 or <e-mail:[log in to unmask]>. Online ordering
is available at <http://drugpubs.drugabuse.gov>. NIDA's new media guide can
be found at <http://drugabuse.gov/mediaguide/>.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical
research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal
agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical
research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both
common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs,
visit <www.nih.gov>.
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