There may be a biological reason for this. A study by University of Toronto researchers published last week in the journal Nature has found that some people carry a genetic variant in a liver enzyme that may protect them from nicotine addiction. People with this genetic variant appear to metabolize nicotine more slowly and usually smoke fewer cigarettes than those without it. Slower Release of Nicotine Few side effects, none of them serious or permanent, have been reported with the gum or patches, which account for more than 90 percent of the nicotine replacement market. The chances of abuse were always considered small for basic pharmacological reasons, scientists note, since both products release nicotine far more slowly than do cigarettes.
Cigarettes deliver an instant hit.
Within 10 seconds they deliver nicotine to the brain. The gum is somewhere in the middle. It takes about 15 to 20 minutes to reach the same level as the patch. Unlike Ritalin, a stimulant widely prescribed for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder that some teenagers have sold to classmates seeking to get high, nicotine has little potential as a drug of abuse. Nonsmokers who try the patch or the gum looking for a buzz are more likely to wind up with a pounding headache, dizziness, a queasy stomach and an unpleasant jittery feeling similar to that induced by consuming massive doses of caffeine.