Sinkevicius Liudas Vincentas, Sakalauskaite Sandra, Bukovskis Maris, Lõokene Margus, Valvere Vahur, Gradauskiene Brigita, Viigimaa Margus
Department of Health Psychology, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, 50161 Kaunas, Lithuania.
Institute of Psychology, Mykolas Romeris University, 08303 Vilnius, Lithuania.
Int J Mol Sci. 2025 Jul 4;26(13):6437. doi: 10.3390/ijms26136437.
Statistical data demonstrate a concurrent rise in smoking prevalence and mental disorders, such as depression and anxiety, which may be attributed to contemporary lifestyle factors, including social media and recent global events. This indicates a potential correlation between these trends, as individuals with mental disorders may engage in smoking as a form of self-medication to alleviate anxiety. However, smoking is harmful and increases the risk of many diseases. Therefore, smoking cessation strategies are increasingly being considered. Nicotine is a naturally produced alkaloid in plants that makes smoking so addictive. Unfortunately, the public's lack of understanding of the effects of nicotine leads to misleading claims in the public and media about its biological effects. Thus, current narrative literature review is focused on the examination of the biological effects of organic nicotine from various angles, considering the psychological aspects of addiction and the immune system. Analysis of recent data showed that nicotine not only causes addiction but also has therapeutic benefits in certain diseases (depression, anxiety, schizophrenia) and has anti-inflammatory properties (autoimmunity, neurodegenerative diseases), and a deeper understanding and a broader approach to its effects is needed.
统计数据表明，吸烟率与抑郁症和焦虑症等精神障碍同时上升，这可能归因于当代生活方式因素，包括社交媒体和近期的全球事件。这表明这些趋势之间存在潜在关联，因为患有精神障碍的个体可能会将吸烟作为一种自我治疗方式来缓解焦虑。然而，吸烟有害，会增加多种疾病的风险。因此，戒烟策略越来越受到关注。尼古丁是植物中天然产生的生物碱，它使吸烟如此容易上瘾。不幸的是，公众对尼古丁影响的缺乏了解导致了公众和媒体对其生物学效应的误导性说法。因此，当前的叙述性文献综述聚焦于从各个角度审视有机尼古丁的生物学效应，同时考虑成瘾的心理方面和免疫系统。对近期数据的分析表明，尼古丁不仅会导致成瘾，还在某些疾病（抑郁症、焦虑症、精神分裂症）中具有治疗益处，并且具有抗炎特性（自身免疫性疾病、神经退行性疾病），需要对其效应有更深入的理解和更广泛的研究方法。
