Drug Testing to Detect Nicotine Addiction

Nicotine is the most commonly used drugs in the U.S. It was reported that nicotine addiction is due to the usage of cigarettes, pipe tobacco. Nicotine, the most active chemical component of tobacco, acts on brain. Nicotine distributes throughout the body and reaches the brain within 10 seconds of inhalation. The reasons for nicotine addiction are the high availability of tobacco, and less number of social and legal consequences of tobacco use. Long-term use of tobacco leads to heart diseases, respiratory infections, asthma and blood clot formation. The other medical consequences of nicotine addiction includes lung cancer, neurological changes, vomiting, tremors, convulsions and death.

In order to decrease the nicotine addiction among people nicotine tests are performed and certain therapy has to given. The nicotine test is performed to detect the presence of cotinine which is a metabolite of nicotine. About 80 percent of the nicotine is converted to cotinine in the liver. It is metabolized to cotinine and nicotine oxide in lungs. The nicotine metabolites are excreted out through urine. Therefore, presence of cotinine in urine is the indicator of the nicotin addiction. Hence, nicotine test is also referred to as “cotinine test”. The nicotine test is performed at situations such as prospective employment assessment, smoking cessation programs, and evaluation of applicants for life and health insurance.