Pharmacological and non-pharmacological smoking motives: a replication and extension

Cigarette smokers (n = 387) completed a questionnaire measure of smoking motives, and subgroups of this sample provided external validation information. Seven factors emerged from a principal components’analysis: automatic, sedative, addictive, stimulation, psychosocial, indulgent and sensorimotor manipulation. A higher-order principal components analysis revealed the presence of two second-order factors. Inspection of the pattern of correlations between factor scores and criterion variables clearly indicated that the first four factors above and their underlying second-order factor are more closely related to nicotine pharmacology and mood-altering effects of nicotine than the latter three motives and their underlying second-order factor. Moreover, the positive correlations between these pharmacological motives and age, coupled with a negative relationship between age and the non-pharmacological motives, support the description of the smoking career as a progressive transfer of reward from non-pharmacological to pharmacological factors. These findings suggest that self-reported reasons for smoking represent more than bias in verbal report.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/75075/1/j.1360-0443.1994.tb00899.x.pd

Cortisol response to a psychological stressor and/or nicotine

The effects of a psychological stressor and nicotine upon corticosteroid release were investigated using a full factorial, repeated-measures design in eight moderate smokers. Sessions involved the presentation of either competitive mental arithmetic or reading aloud and either smoking a usual cigarette or sham smoking. Self-reported anxiety increased after exposure to competitive mental arithmetic, confirming the stressfulness of the procedure. Cortisol levels increased significantly in response to psychological stress and showed a trend towards a significant elevation over time in response to nicotine self-administration. The two manipulations in combination produced additive effects upon plasma cortisol. These findings underscore the usefulness of the corticosteroid response as a marker of the impact of different procedures and suggest that it may provide an indicator for exploring the mechanisms by which nicotine-stress interactions are mediated. Systematic research that varies temporal and other parameters involving nicotine and various stressors will be needed to resolve inconsistencies in the literature on smoking and anxiety in the context of stress.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/28597/1/0000405.pd

Euphoriant effects of nicotine in smokers

Two studies were conducted to replicate and extend previous demonstrations of smoking-induced, dose-related reports of euphoria, and to confirm this relationship using measures of plasma nicotine. In experiment 1, overnight-deprived subjects, in three different sessions, smoked ultralow-, high-nicotine, and usualbrand cigarettes. In experiment 2, ultralow-, medium-, and high-nicotine cigarettes were used, and plasma nicotine was measured. In both studies, subjects were asked to depress a button during euphoric sensations. Number of sensations for the ultralow-nicotine cigarette was significantly lower than for the high-nicotine cigarette in the first study, and than for both the medium- and high-nicotine conditions in the second; a significant linear trend was observed for number of sensations as a function of plasma nicotine level in the second study. For the high-nicotine cigarette, 19 of 22 subjects experienced at least one sensation (mean around three), starting around 2.5 min after lighting up. Together, these studies support the existence of a dose-response relationship for nicotine-induced euphoric sensations; suggest that they are more pronounced following overnight abstinence than following minimal deprivation, and in more dependent smokers; and characterize in detail the temporal features of these sensations.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/46338/1/213_2005_Article_BF02247422.pd

Discordance of physiological and biochemical response to smoking and to psychological stress

Both smoking and psychological stress produce marked effects upon cardiovascular function, and several studies have demonstrated that in combination they produce additive or potentiating effects. More recently, it has been reported that individuals strongly reactive to psychological stress are also strongly reactive to nicotine. In an attempt to replicate and extend those findings, we examined reactivity to smoking and competitive mental arithmetic across several physiological and biochemical variables. Despite stable responding across mental arithmetic trials, we were unable to demonstrate significant correlations between reactivity to smoking and to a psychological stressor. We further observed that anxiety level, when low, was a poor predictor of desire to smoke and of withdrawal, whereas higher anxiety levels were more tightly linked to these measures. These findings have implications for the iDentification of individuals at risk of cardiovascular disease as well as for the design of smoking treatment and relapse prevention programs.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72030/1/j.1360-0443.1990.tb01607.x.pd

Temporal stability and within-subject consistency of nicotine withdrawal symptoms

This study tested the temporal stability and within-subject consistency of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-III-R (DSM-III-R) nicotine withdrawal symptoms in 39 (21 female, 18 male) regular smokers. Subjects provided withdrawal symptom ratings while smoking ad libitum and during two 48-hour abstinence periods that were separated by 1 week. All but two symptoms, increased eating and hunger, demonstrated adequate temporal stability (i.e., stability coefficients >= .70). Within-subject consistency was found for impatience, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, and irritability. The total (average) score emerged as the most stable and consistent indicator of withdrawal. Results of a cluster analysis suggest the presence of two groups of smokers based on the withdrawal experience. Possible reasons for variability in nicotine withdrawal symptom reports are discussed.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/31078/1/0000755.pd

Mecamylamine pretreatment increases subsequent nicotine self-administration as indicated by changes in plasma nicotine level

Acute administration of mecamylamine, a centrally active nicotinic cholinergic agonist, has been shown to increase amount of smoking as indicated by smoking topography (e.g., puff rate, puff duration), expired carbon monoxide changes, and other inferential measures. In the present study, subjects showed significantly greater increases in plasma nicotine following smoking of two high-nicotine research cigarettes when pretreated with mecamylamine than when pretreated with placebo, even though no significant differences in puff volume or puff number were detected. Interestingly, none of our subjects reported nausea, although some achieved plasma nicotine levels at which nausea would typically be expected. We attribute the observed increases in nicotine intake to compensatory behavior designed to overcome mecamylamine's blocking effects.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/46446/1/213_2004_Article_BF00518198.pd

Effects of nicotine abstinence and menstrual phase on task performance

Both menstrual phase and nicotine have been shown to affect task performance. Though conflicting results have been reported, at least one well-controlled study has demonstrated that women at midluteal phase show superior performance on speech articulation and speeded motor coordination tests, but poorer performance on perceptual-spatial tests, than during menses. Smokers have demonstrated superior performance on numerous tasks following nicotine than following placebo. To explore the separate and combined influence of these factors, we studied 13 regularly-menstruating smokers using a two (smoking vs. 12 hours' abstinence) by two (menstrual vs. midluteal phase) factorial design. During each session, subjects completed a test battery including two speeded motor coordination tasks, a computerized reaction time test, and the Stroop (1935) color/word test. Subjects completed the Stroop color and color-word tasks significantly faster after ad lib smoking than after overnight abstinence. No other significant differences emerged. Our findings replicate, in an all-female sample, previous reports that speed of cognitive processing is reduced by nicotine abstinence (or enhanced by nicotine administration). Our failure to observe menstrual cycle effects raises the possibility that the anti-estrogenic effects of smoking may attenuate phase differences in performance.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/31479/1/0000401.pd

Cotinine in an ultrafiltrate of saliva

Background. We have developed a device for the simplified collection of a prepurified sample of saliva in the mouth.Method. The device is based on the principle of an osmotic pump and accumulates about 1.2 ml of an ultrafiltrate of saliva within 8 min. We have investigated the ultrafiltrate for its utility as a biological medium in the evaluation of cigarette smoking status.Results. (a) In 58 matched samples from 13 subjects, the correlation coefficient for the cotinine concentration in the saliva and the ultrafiltrate was 0.95; (b) in matched plasma and ultrafiltrate samples from 27 smokers, the correlation coefficient for the cotinine concentrations was 0.96 with plasma containing 1.2 times the ultrafiltrate mean; (c) in a nonsmoker, elevated cotinine levels could be detected in the ultrafiltrate more than 24 hr after smoking 2 cigarettes, and the pattern of rise and decrease reflected that in whole saliva; and (d) in a habitual smoker, the mean cotinine concentration in the ultrafiltrate was 157 ng/ml (SD +/- 25.7 ng/ml) during a period of smoking 15 cigarettes per day and dropped to a mean of 47 ng/ml (SD +/- 10.5) when smoking was reduced to 5 cigarettes per day; after cessation of smoking, detectable concentrations of cotinine persisted for up to 5 days.Conclusion. The device facilitated the aesthetic, noninvasive collection of a biological sample useful in the validation of smoking status.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/30282/1/0000684.pd

Sweet taste preference in women smokers: Comparison with nonsmokers and effects of menstrual phase and nicotine abstinence

Cigarette smokers weigh less than comparably aged nonsmokers, and many gain weight following cessation. Though some evidence suggests that nicotine reduces food intake, with a selective effect on sweet-tasting foods, the issue remains unresolved. In the current study, 64 women (20 smokers, 26 never-smokers, and 18 ex-smokers) were tested for sweet taste preference; 9 of these smokers were studied under conditions of both ad lib smoking and overnight abstinence, in three hormonally verified menstrual phases. 1) Although no overall differences were detected in taste preference among the three groups, significantly more smokers than nonsmokers preferred the higher sucrose concentrations. 2) No significant differences due to menstrual phase were observed. 3) Although preference ratings did not differ significantly between overnight abstinence and ad lib smoking, a subset of smokers who preferred higher sucrose concentrations rated their preference for the solutions significantly higher during the ad lib smoking sessions. Our findings suggest that smoking and nonsmoking women differ with respect to taste preference and that, at least in a subset of female smokers, preference is affected by nicotine abstinence/acute dosing.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/29019/1/0000049.pd

Effects of fluoxetine on weight gain and food intake in smokers who reduce nicotine intake

The effect of fluoxetine hydrochloride, a 5-HT uptake inhibitor (60 mg/day PO), in preventing weight gain associated with nicotine reduction was investigated in participants in a double-blind, placebo-controlled smoking-cessation trial. A lunch of cheese pizza and chocolate bars was offered, and caloric intake was monitored. The analysis focused on subjects (placebo: n=11; fluoxetine: n=10) who succeeded in reaching cotinine levels of less than 50% of their starting cotinine levels (signifying a stringent reduction in nicotine intake) and who participated in pre- and post-nicotine reduction lunch sessions 70 days apart. Subjects on placebo gained significantly more weight (mean+/-SEM = +3.3+/-0.7 kg) than subjects on fluoxetine (-0.6+/-1.2 kg). In fluoxetine-treated subjects, weight gain/loss was strongly correlated with initial body mass index, with higher BMI being associated with greater decreases in weight. A trend towards decreased caloric intake in the fluoxetine group was observed; the change in total calories at lunch was significantly correlated with weight change, an association accounted for principally by change in pizza intake. We conclude that fluoxetine treatment effectively prevents the weight gain that accompanies nicotine reduction and that this phenomenon is mediated, at least in part, by diminished caloric intake.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/29620/1/0000709.pd