Nicotine As A Short Term Treatment To Help Bring Metabolism Up?

[Aleeri]

*For the sake of this discussion, let's oversee that it's an addictive substance. I've had no cravings so for me I seem to be able to use it reasonably. I smoked 1 year when I was 20 so I know the feeling.*

I've been experimenting with Swedish snus (oral tobacco) for about half a year now on and off. As few are aware Swedish snus is steamed and not heat fermented which minimizes nitrosamine production, basically making it the safest tobacco product on the market from a cancer perspective. In fact, there is not much research to say that Swedish snus would be bad in any regard, anyway let's carry on.

It is clear that nicotine and caffeine are similar in many ways. Both are stimulating, promote wakefulness, increase dopamine and hence motivation, increase energy expenditure and AMPK activators etc.

Both seem to have an adaptation period where they can trigger stress response with increased cortisol, especially with increased dosage, but prolonged chronic use will normalize this effect but leave the metabolic benefits.

I have noticed that for example 1mg daily (1 snus) is not enough to normalize the nicotine-induced stress response for me, I need to get up into the 3mg (3 snus) or more daily for this to work. Otherwise, I notice hyperactivity and adrenaline after the first 10min dopamine rush.

What interests me is that using tobacco seems to be one of the most reliable ways of increasing resting heart rate for me. I've been tracking resting heart rate for the last year using Fitbit charge. During periods of tobacco use, there is a clear increase in my resting heart rate and the only time which actually gets me into the 70-80 range resting. Without I've been stuck in the 63-66 range.

There is also research that nicotine helps reverse some of the mental side effects of hypothyroidism which is interesting.

What do you guys think about using tobacco as a short-term way of bringing the metabolic rate up?

Waste of time since it might just go back to baseline when you stop? (like when smokers quit and often put on weight etc)

Do you think the initial stress response period of adaptation (cortisol/adrenaline release) does more harm than the substance do good in the longer term?

To me, it seems so similar to caffeine but stronger and shorter acting.

https://www.selfhacked.com/blog/28-proven-health-benefits-nicotine-4-potential-risks/

 

[ddjd]

I've been experimenting with Swedish snus (oral tobacco)

im in germany, do you know where i can get it stuff?

ive also had the same issue of heart rate in the 60's. Sunshine brings it up, but cant always rely on that in germany!

 

[Aleeri]

im in germany, do you know where i can get it stuff?

ive also had the same issue of heart rate in the 60's. Sunshine brings it up, but cant always rely on that in germany!

I buy mine here: http://www.snusexpress.com/en/ shipped to Thailand. I'm Swedish so I can attest that it is good stuff, shipped directly from Sweden. Only took 3 days for me to get it which is unreal, have no idea how it goes that fast. Should be even faster to Germany.

When it comes to brands, they all have to abide by the same laws concerning nitrosamines, so they are all good options. But if you're extra careful, here is the cutting edge:

Epok: http://www.snusexpress.com/en/53_epok-snus

Above is brand new patented snus, the patent was recently bought by big tobacco. They use a refinement process that removes all tobacco carcinogens but keeps the bioactives. It is not a nicotine isolate product, it's a real tobacco product but without tobacco flavour and does not stain the teeth:

"A new type of snus - white snus, made of purified tobacco. Using a special and environmentally friendly process, the tobacco is purified and undesirable components are removed. Both the portion pouches and the snus are completely white.

Other than that, the snus does of course offer the same snus experience as regular "brown" snus. Epok snus does not have to be kept refrigerated.

Comes in a wide range of flavors!"

My favourite though is this one but has a strong tobacco flavour, what can I say I'm old school haha: Lundgrens Skåne White Portion


It's interesting you mention sunshine because this works for me too! When I go out and lay in the sun for an hour in the afternoon my heart rate is pretty consistently 80-100, which is an amazing rate for lying down and not moving.

I often use sunlight to treat occasional hangovers or lack of sleep etc, usually a coffee+aspirin+1 hour in the sun and I am as good as new.

 

[Arnold Grape]

I've noticed the mg of Nicotine in Snus tends to be around 8-10; I've been taking these Pixotine toothpicks, which have around three mg and no other additives. Initially these things were upping my temps somewhat and increasing heart rate, but I don't know if you keep needing to increase the dose to achieve a similar effect? It also seems like if you combine something like this with coffee the effect does not necessarily become more noticeable. In other words, I think there could be some redundancy in action.

 

[Herbie]

I used 4-5 pouches per day of General Snus when in Norway. Great product, really enjoyed it.

I think using it in the northern winters is beneficial.

I do not use tobacco in hot summer and only use it in winter. I have no issues stopping the use of tobacco products in spring, I increase caffeine/coffee intake to help with the transition. It is worse for me to do something crazy like stop drinking coffee and caffeine then to stop using tobacco in terms of withdrawal symptoms.

I think its good when using snus after breakfast and stopping before supper.

I don't think its a waste if you do it and then metabolism goes slow after stopping, if you feel it to be increasing wellbeing while using it, its worth it. I would work on increasing metabolism through other means while using the snus so there is no abrupt side effects when it comes time to stop.

If a person was hypo thyroid, used tobacco and was under eating and then replaced the tobacco with food, its creating the environment for weight gain.

 

[Aleeri]

I've noticed the mg of Nicotine in Snus tends to be around 8-10; I've been taking these Pixotine toothpicks, which have around three mg and no other additives. Initially these things were upping my temps somewhat and increasing heart rate, but I don't know if you keep needing to increase the dose to achieve a similar effect? It also seems like if you combine something like this with coffee the effect does not necessarily become more noticeable. In other words, I think there could be some redundancy in action.

That's right, but the absorption from snus is only about 10%, so usually the standard 8mg snus strength equal absorption of 0,8-1mg nicotine

Swedish Match - Nicotine uptake
Determination of Nicotine Absorption from Multiple Tobacco Products and Nicotine Gum

I have found that for myself, tolerance does not really develop much more at a certain point, I reach a plateau at a couple of pouches per day.

But my friends who are real snus addicts since we're back in high school even they are doing almost like a tin per day and has no noticeable effects from a snus. I guess the key is still moderation.

 

[Aleeri]

I used 4-5 pouches per day of General Snus when in Norway. Great product, really enjoyed it.

I think using it in the northern winters is beneficial.

I do not use tobacco in hot summer and only use it in winter. I have no issues stopping the use of tobacco products in spring, I increase caffeine/coffee intake to help with the transition. It is worse for me to do something crazy like stop drinking coffee and caffeine then to stop using tobacco in terms of withdrawal symptoms.

I think its good when using snus after breakfast and stopping before supper.

I don't think its a waste if you do it and then metabolism goes slow after stopping, if you feel it to be increasing wellbeing while using it, its worth it. I would work on increasing metabolism through other means while using the snus so there is no abrupt side effects when it comes time to stop.

If a person was hypo thyroid, used tobacco and was under eating and then replaced the tobacco with food, its creating the environment for weight gain.

Interesting take, totally agree there. In Thailand where I live I don't use snus when I am outside, it's simply too heating and with the tropical weather, it becomes uncomfortable.

I like that snus can be used in the evenings as well since the half-life is so short that it won't affect sleep unless you do it less than 2 hours before.

I'm curious since I hear from very few occasional snus users like myself or you. How was your initial experience with it? Did you have any kind of stress response, overstimulation or excess adrenaline?

I'm met/met, low COMT function so I break down dopamine at a much slower rate than the average person. Because of this, I have like laser focus when it comes to mental work, it's like I am always on a low dosage of adderall. But actually taking adderall makes me sick, nausea, anxiety, rapid heartbeat, no euphoria or positive feelings. Believe me though, low COMT is a pain in the ****, the ups and downs are constant.

When it comes to coffee I have realized that the stimulation is more metabolic rather than dopaminergic. I can drink very large amounts of coffee without any kind of side effects. The overstimulation feels very different also compared to a dopaminergic stimulant, so must be primary metabolic and adenosine receptors for me.

When it comes to nicotine, I feel euphoria quite strong, muscle relaxation, greater clarity of being. Occasionally though when tolerance is low it switches after awhile to this jittery type of hyperactivity. Sounds familiar to anyone?

I'm trying to figure out if its a general tolerance thing or my COMT genotype. I really have to take it slow and increase my tobacco dosing slowly in order to avoid these type of effects, but once I built some tolerance, it seems like it might have a balancing effect on my COMT, preventing excess stimulation from all kinds of stuff.

I'm leaning towards this almost being like an adaptogenic effect, where you're essentially teaching your body to handle stress better. There is an interesting study that showed faster recovery from stressful events in people who consumed nicotine daily.

I am thinking that at least for me it is only beneficial for chronic use with taking periods going completely off. This study showed increased in adrenaline from vaping nicotine short term but interestingly enough no oxidative stress: One e-cigarette with nicotine leads to adrenaline changes in nonsmokers' hearts

 

[DaveFoster]

T3 or progesterone will raise your pulse.

A tiny bit of snus gave me anxiety (barely a sub-therapeutic amount,) but nicotine worked well.

 

[Herbie]

My initial experience was I had been smoking cigarettes for a few months and got given a tin of Snus for Christmas when in Norway and I put 1 pouch in and had over production of saliva and kept it in for 1 hour and was an intense experience, jittery, probably high adrenaline and ended up feeling nauseous but after a few days it was very good experience with no salvia or negative experience. A Norwegian guy I was with t the time was using Snus chronically and I thought the guy was a real maverick but then I built up that tolerance too.

If I smoke tobacco too soon after breakfast I can get a bit restless/ hyperactive.

From what you have said it is a similar experience for me with building the tolerance up slowly and then having all positive effects once the tolerance is built. I think it is adapting, its evident of how powerful tobacco can be on the body.

I have the euphoria, relaxation and can think clearly and focus sharply.

 

[Aleeri]

My initial experience was I had been smoking cigarettes for a few months and got given a tin of Snus for Christmas when in Norway and I put 1 pouch in and had over production of saliva and kept it in for 1 hour and was an intense experience, jittery, probably high adrenaline and ended up feeling nauseous but after a few days it was very good experience with no salvia or negative experience. A Norwegian guy I was with t the time was using Snus chronically and I thought the guy was a real maverick but then I built up that tolerance too.

If I smoke tobacco too soon after breakfast I can get a bit restless/ hyperactive.

From what you have said it is a similar experience for me with building the tolerance up slowly and then having all positive effects once the tolerance is built. I think it is adapting, its evident of how powerful tobacco can be on the body.

I have the euphoria, relaxation and can think clearly and focus sharply.

Thanks for sharing, sounds like I can cross off my COMT!

 

[Aleeri]

T3 or progesterone will raise your pulse.

A tiny bit of snus gave me anxiety (barely a sub-therapeutic amount,) but nicotine worked well.

I'm using NDT and occasional low dose prog (Progestene, 1-3 drops), seems like a very slow incremental increase.

 

[DaveFoster]

I'm using NDT and occasional low dose prog (Progestene, 1-3 drops), seems like a very slow incremental increase.

Thyroid supplementation often takes several months to noticeably raise one's pulse.

That's a very low dosage of progesterone. Caffeine with progesterone overlaps with many of the thyroid's functions.

 

[ddjd]

I buy mine here: http://www.snusexpress.com/en/ shipped to Thailand. I'm Swedish so I can attest that it is good stuff, shipped directly from Sweden.

Checked out the website today and there's no more epok? Is it the same for you?

 

[Aleeri]

Checked out the website today and there's no more epok? Is it the same for you?

Nope I can buy it Dropbox - Screenshot 2018-04-18 14.45.40.png

 

[ddjd]

does anyone find nicotine drops in glycerin when taken orally cause unpleasant over salivation? i got mine from mitolabs

 

[Elchapchapchapo]

Here is a source for nicotine USP (drops) in USA for those interested

Nicotine USP Solution in 100% Propylene Glycol (30 mL) - BlueBrainBoost

 

[Goat-e]

does anyone find nicotine drops in glycerin when taken orally cause unpleasant over salivation? i got mine from mitolabs

What dosage of this did you use, I just got the same product but the dropper isn't graduated and I don't have any ml syringes to hand to measure it...

 

[cyclops]

Thinking about purchasing this one: Medium Chain Triglycerides

It's in MCT. Does anyone know how much nicotine would be in 1 drop if used on skin?

 

[Luckytype]

I have been trying this same thing over the past few months more so because of the enjoyment.

My delivery method is American Spirit turquoise/black or Nat Sherman MCDs. The latter are the most wonderful thing ive experienced in a while. No issues yet so far, I too have no problem stopping for days at a time and also do not intend to use during the summer.

Hands warm, pulse up a little(thyroid has helped this slowly since May), good sense of well being, this has immensly improved since May.