Nicotine Effects on Nutrition
Ξ December 17th, 2009 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Old School Papers |
Written in March of 2002
In my paper, I would like to examine two sides of smoking in the realm of nutrition and drugs. For one, why is smoking so addictive and secondly, how does nicotine effect your body’s internal functioning, in regards to the enzymes, vitamins and hormones that are affected by all the smoke that you take in.
To start with, why does the RDA recommend that smokers get more Vitamin C and E than the rest of us? Well yes, because they help lower levels of free radicals. Free radicals are partials that have been oxidized, which means that they have lost a electron. When you breathe these free radicals in, they steal electrons from enzymes and cells, oxidizing them, which stop them from doing their job effectually. D-alpha tocopherol, or vitamin E, is a fat soluble vitamin found in nuts, seeds, vegetable and fish oils, whole grains, cereals, and apricots and ascorbic acid, commonly known as vitamin C, is a water soluble vitamin present in citrus fruits and juices, green peppers, cabbage, spinach, broccoli, kiwi, and strawberries. These vitamins are antioxidants. They help to protect the body against the damaging effects of free radicals by binding onto them, by essentially giving up a hydrogen atom. In the process, the vitamin C is used up. Cigarette smoke, which contains a lot of free radicals, places heavy demands on the body’s antioxidant defense system, including its vitamin C supply. The turnover of vitamin C is much greater in smokers than in nonsmokers so because of this increased demand, smokers need a higher intake of vitamin C than nonsmokers, in order to maintain normal blood levels of this vitamin. (more…)