National Institute on Drug Abuse

In the following viewpoint the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) argues that most people smoke tobacco products because they are addicted to nicotine. According to NIDA, research shows that nicotine increases the levels of dopamine in the brain, which triggers feelings of pleasure, thus encouraging users to continue nicotine use. Tobacco smoking is responsible for more than four hundred thousand deaths in the United States each year and $138 billion in health care costs, NIDA claims. NIDA is an agency of the National Institutes of Health.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. In NIDA’s view, how is nicotine absorbed by the body?
2. According to NIDA, what led scientists to believe that nicotine might not be the only psychoactive ingredient in tobacco?
3. What did the 1999 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse reveal about...