Nicotine is one of the most widely used drugs in the United States. It is available in several different forms, such as cigarettes, tobacco and chewing tobacco. According to the American Heart Association, nicotine creates a short-term increase in your blood pressure levels, heart rate, and the flow of blood into the heart. It also reduces how much oxygen your blood can carry. Nicotine can stay in the blood for anywhere from two to eight hours, depending on how it is consumed, and the forms in which it is taken are very dangerous to your health.
Step 1
Don't start smoking in the first place. If you have never smoked, you won't have any internal craving or addiction to nicotine. Addiction can vary from person to person in its intensity, but many individuals only need a small exposure to nicotine before they develop a chemical dependency that can quickly turn to addiction.
Step 2
Avoid carrying around nicotine products when you leave the home or go places. The more accessible nicotine is to you, the more likely you will be to use it.
Step 3
Stay away from external factors that may influence you to smoke or create the urge to smoke. Secondhand smoke is a primary example--the smoking can activate your brain and remind you of the connection you have created between the smell of cigarette smoking and the chemical benefits of using nicotine. This can cause craving, and feeding into this craving can cause addiction.
Step 4
Avoid taking nicotine when you feel an urge or start to experience cravings. Many people feed into addictions by allowing their body to tell them when they are running low on nicotine. Jitters, increased stress and anxiety, changes in body temperature and irritability are all common ways that people get hooked on smoking cigarettes or using other nicotine products. Each time you submit to the desire to use nicotine, you strengthen the drugs' hold on you. By abstaining from nicotine use--even when you have the strongest urge for it--you prevent yourself from developing an addiction.
