Drug and Alcohol Rehab Blog
Friday, November 6, 2009
Crushing Cigarettes in Virtual Reality Reduces Nicotine Dependence
Crushing cigarettes in cyberspace may help to treat smoking addiction, according to a new study by Canadian researchers.
The researchers randomly divided 91 smokers enrolled in a 12-week anti-smoking support program into two groups. All participants attended four weekly sessions of cyber treatment. In a computer-generated virtual reality environment, one group simulated crushing virtual cigarettes, while the other group grasped balls. Participants who crushed cigarettes exhibited significantly reduced nicotine dependence and higher rates of smoking abstinence than participants who grasped balls.
At the end of 12 weeks, the smoking abstinence rate for cigarette crushers was 15 percent versus 2 percent for the ball-grasping participants. In addition, cigarette crushers stayed in the treatment program longer, and at a six-month follow-up, 39 percent of cigarette crushers reported not smoking during the previous week versus 20 percent of ball graspers.
Brenda K. Wiederhold, PhD, MBA, BCIA, Editor-in-Chief of CyberPsychology and Behavior, from the Interactive Media Institute in San Diego, Calif., commented on the study: "It is important to note that this study increased treatment retention. All too often individuals drop out of treatment prior to completion. It will be interesting now to go further and compare this to other popular treatments such as the nicotine patch."
(Source: www.sciencedaily.com)
The researchers randomly divided 91 smokers enrolled in a 12-week anti-smoking support program into two groups. All participants attended four weekly sessions of cyber treatment. In a computer-generated virtual reality environment, one group simulated crushing virtual cigarettes, while the other group grasped balls. Participants who crushed cigarettes exhibited significantly reduced nicotine dependence and higher rates of smoking abstinence than participants who grasped balls.
At the end of 12 weeks, the smoking abstinence rate for cigarette crushers was 15 percent versus 2 percent for the ball-grasping participants. In addition, cigarette crushers stayed in the treatment program longer, and at a six-month follow-up, 39 percent of cigarette crushers reported not smoking during the previous week versus 20 percent of ball graspers.
Brenda K. Wiederhold, PhD, MBA, BCIA, Editor-in-Chief of CyberPsychology and Behavior, from the Interactive Media Institute in San Diego, Calif., commented on the study: "It is important to note that this study increased treatment retention. All too often individuals drop out of treatment prior to completion. It will be interesting now to go further and compare this to other popular treatments such as the nicotine patch."
(Source: www.sciencedaily.com)
Labels: addiction, cigarettes, nicotine, smoking
posted by Drug-Rehab.com at 9:32 AM
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Drug and Alcohol Rehab Blog
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Nicotine: More Than an Addiction
A new study from Brown University indicates that nicotine is not only addictive, but it may also interfere with dozens of cellular interactions in the body. The study, which is published in the Journal of Proteone Research, shows that nicotine may affect the body more extensively than previously thought.
Nicotine appears to impact cell communication throughout the mammalian nervous system, and "opens several new lines of investigation" for possible treatments of smoking addiction and disease.
The study analyzed the cellular processes of brain tissue in mice. In particular, researchers studied a receptor (the alpha-7 receptor) in the brain where nicotine bonds with the surface of the cells when it enters the body. Researchers compared cellular processes in the brains of mice with the receptor and in mice without, and found that 55 different proteins interacted with the alpha-7 receptor. This finding indicates that the alpha-7 receptor may have many more functions in the body than previously known, and that the presence of nicotine may negatively affect each of these functions.
(Source: www.miller-mccune.com)
Nicotine appears to impact cell communication throughout the mammalian nervous system, and "opens several new lines of investigation" for possible treatments of smoking addiction and disease.
The study analyzed the cellular processes of brain tissue in mice. In particular, researchers studied a receptor (the alpha-7 receptor) in the brain where nicotine bonds with the surface of the cells when it enters the body. Researchers compared cellular processes in the brains of mice with the receptor and in mice without, and found that 55 different proteins interacted with the alpha-7 receptor. This finding indicates that the alpha-7 receptor may have many more functions in the body than previously known, and that the presence of nicotine may negatively affect each of these functions.
(Source: www.miller-mccune.com)
posted by Drug-Rehab.com at 1:18 PM
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Drug and Alcohol Rehab Blog
Monday, January 5, 2009
Nicotine and Opiates Have Similar Effect on Brain's Reward System
A study published earlier this year by the University of Chicago Medical Center found that nicotine and opiates have similar effects on the brain's reward system. Naturally rewarding experiences such as eating, sex, and exercise cause the brain to release the neurotransmitter dopamine. Dopamine stimulates the pleasure centers in key areas of the brain. Researchers found that although opiates and nicotine are very different substances, the end result as far as dopamine signaling is very much the same.
Daniel McGehee, Associate Professor in Anesthesia & Critical Care at the University of Chicago Medical Center commented on the findings:
Daniel McGehee, Associate Professor in Anesthesia & Critical Care at the University of Chicago Medical Center commented on the findings:
"There is a specific part of the nucleus accumbens [a pleasure center] where opiates have been shown to affect behavior, and when we tested nicotine in that area, the effects on dopamine are almost identical."The study provides support for the physiological nature of addiction, as well as the seriousness of nicotine addiction. If nicotine ultimately affects the brain in the same way as opiates, how can it be less serious (Source: ScienceDaily.com)
posted by Drug-Rehab.com at 8:09 AM
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