On Target - Weekly Journal, Issue September 23, 2001
Do Cigarettes Act As Antidepressants
According to a report published in the Archives of General Psychiatry (Arch Gen Psychiatry 2001;58:821-827), cigarette smoking may have effects on the human brain similar to those of antidepressant drugs, possibly explaining the high rate of smoking among depressed people and their resistance to quitting. For the study, postmortem samples were examined of locus coeruleus from the brains of seven people who had been heavy smokers and nine nonsmokers, all of whom had been considered mentally healthy. It was found that the brains of long-term smokers had neurochemical abnormalities similar to the brains of animals treated with antidepressant drugs. Specifically, the brains of long-time smokers had significantly fewer alpha-2 adrenoceptors and significantly less of the enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase, which helps to manufacture the brain chemicals noradrenaline and dopamine. According to the authors, these two effects have also been reported in animals exposed to antidepressant drugs and are the two markers used to identify potential antidepressant medications. The authors added that this is the first time it has been demonstrated that chronic smoking produced biological effects in the brain that are associated with antidepressive effects in the brain.
Do Cigarettes Act As Antidepressants
According to a report published in the Archives of General Psychiatry (Arch Gen Psychiatry 2001;58:821-827), cigarette smoking may have effects on the human brain similar to those of antidepressant drugs, possibly explaining the high rate of smoking among depressed people and their resistance to quitting. For the study, postmortem samples were examined of locus coeruleus from the brains of seven people who had been heavy smokers and nine nonsmokers, all of whom had been considered mentally healthy. It was found that the brains of long-term smokers had neurochemical abnormalities similar to the brains of animals treated with antidepressant drugs. Specifically, the brains of long-time smokers had significantly fewer alpha-2 adrenoceptors and significantly less of the enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase, which helps to manufacture the brain chemicals noradrenaline and dopamine. According to the authors, these two effects have also been reported in animals exposed to antidepressant drugs and are the two markers used to identify potential antidepressant medications. The authors added that this is the first time it has been demonstrated that chronic smoking produced biological effects in the brain that are associated with antidepressive effects in the brain.
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