Women More Prone to Develop Nicotine Addiction, Less Successful at Quitting Due to Brain Circuitry [Study]

Women are designed differently than men. Unfortunately, their brain circuity makes them susceptible to developing nicotine addiction much quicker than men.

Women's Brain Circuitry on Nicotine Addiction

Over 480,000 Americans lose their lives to smoking-related causes each year in the United States, where it is still a major preventable cause of disease and death, according to the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control. Roughly 11% of adult Americans reported smoking cigarettes as of 2021, and men were somewhat more likely than women to smoke.

However, according to one study, while fewer women smoke on average, they are more likely to develop nicotine addiction. In fact, women can be addicted to smoking quicker and with lower nicotine exposure compared to men.

"Studies show that women have a higher propensity to develop addiction to nicotine than men and are less successful at quitting," said Sally Pauss, a doctoral student at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in Lexington who led the project under the supervision of associate professor Terry Hinds Jr., said in a statement. "Our work aims to understand what makes women more susceptible to nicotine use disorder to reduce the gender disparity in treating nicotine addiction."

It is believed that estrogen plays a role in why women tend to be easily addicted to nicotine. The amount of estrogen produced by men and women differs clearly.

Consequently, the scientists searched through a sizable collection of genes—specifically, those expressed in our brains—that are known to be triggered by this hormone. The only class of potential genes that meets these requirements is the one that codes for the olfactomedin protein family, which has a variety of functions in both the early development and functional maturation of the nervous system.

To learn more about the relationships between olfactomedins, estrogen, and nicotine, the researchers conducted several experiments using rat uterine cells and human uterine cells. Through their research, an intriguing feedback loop was discovered -- estrogen stimulates olfactomedins, which are then reduced in the presence of nicotine. Put differently; the olfactomedin intermediate may be the reason why people are seeking out nicotine to satiate their reward circuits.

ALSO READ: 2-Hour Exposure to Traffic Pollution Decreases Brain's Functional Connectivity, Study Says

How Long Does It Take To Get Addicted To Nicotine?

Nicotine addiction depends on every individual. The new study suggests that women tend to get addicted faster than men. Another study also learned that teenagers are prone to get addicted in just a few days or puffs.

Nicotine has the potential to be as addictive as heroin, cocaine, or alcohol. It simply takes one or two uses to cause nicotine dependence in your body.

It only takes a few cigarettes to become addicted, a hypothesis that some smokers had but never supported, has been confirmed by scientists in a separate study. A few 12- and 13-year-olds showed indicators of addiction within a few days of their first smoke.

"There's been a suspicion that many people become addicted very quickly, but this is really the first hard evidence that we've had that this occurs," said Dr. Richard Hurt, director of the NicotineDependency Unit at the Mayo Clinic.

According to Dr. Joseph DiFranza, who leads the research at the University of Massachusetts, the results were crucial in alerting children not to experiment or fool around with cigarettes because even a few weeks of messing around could result in a lifetime addiction.

ALSO READ: A New Study Finds Europe Losing More Than $190 Billion To Air Pollution Every Year

Check out more news and information on MEDICINE & HEALTH in Science Times.