nicotine increases what brain
Recent research has shown how nicotine acts on the brain. Nicotine activates the circuitry that regulates feelings of pleasure, the so-called reward pathways. Research has shown that nicotine increases the levels of dopamine (a key brain chemical involved in mediating the desire to consume drugs) in the reward circuits of the brain. Nicotine's pharmacokinetic properties have been found to enhance its abuse potential. Smoking cigarettes produces a rapid distribution of nicotine to the brain, with drug levels peaking within 10 seconds of inhalation.