Genetic link to smoking addiction

Scientists have identified genetic variations that raise the risk of lung cancer for smokers and former smokers.

There is some evidence to suggest that they may make carriers more addicted to tobacco. Three research teams, writing in the journals Nature and Nature Genetics, each pinpointed two key areas of variation on chromosome 15.

The variants are common in the population - but they only raise lung cancer risk in those who have smoked.

Current or former smokers who carry two copies of both variants, one from each parent - about 15% of the total - have a raised risk of 70-80%.

Those who carry one copy of each variant have a raised risk of around 28%.
more......
Tags: quit smoking stop smoking quit smoking aides

Neat Charts on Cancer Death

------------------


--------------------------------

Pushing Tobacco on the web: is YouTube telling or selling you something?

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Smoking Drug Withdrawal

For a detailed explanation of this at whyfiles.org These brain slices show levels of the "killjoy" enzyme MAO B in the brains of two people. The non-smoker at the top has plenty of MAO B, but the smoker at bottom has much less -- a sign that something in cigarette smoke is destroying MAO B, allowing the pleasure chemical dopamine to tell the body it likes smoking and wants to continue.
What all this information says is of the 4000 or more chemicals in cigarette smoke there is something else other than nicotine that makes withdrawal even harder and something might be needed to lessen the shock of drug withdrawal. Idefinitely believe that is what is working for me.
Tags: quit smoking stop smoking nicotine patch quit smoking aides Equate