We explain how nicotine behaves in the body and whether it makes a difference whether you smoke, vape or sniff.
How long does nicotine stay in the body?
Tobacco products such as cigarettes, snuff or snus contain nicotine because it is found in the tobacco plant. When ingested, nicotine triggers chemical reactions in the brain after just a few seconds, such as a stimulating effect on the body or an increase in alertness.
In this blog article, we want to take a close look at how long nicotine stays in the body and when it starts to break down. In addition, we want to briefly explain how much nicotine is ingested through smoking, vaping or snus.
How can nicotine be detected in the body?
When the body ingests nicotine, the substance travels through some organs and not only the lungs are affected. A large part is broken down in the kidneys. The body converts nicotine into cotinine as it breaks down. Cotinine is a metabolite of nicotine and can be detected in blood, urine or saliva with the help of laboratory tests.
The concentration of cotinine depends on how long and how much you smoke. The most reliable test is to measure the cotinine level in the blood.
How long does nicotine stay in the body?
On average, it takes the body up to eight hours after smoking to break down nicotine. In regular smokers, cotinine can also be detected ten to thirty days after the smoking cessation .
A study published in the American Journal of Public Health found that cotinine concentrations in occasional smokers returned to normal levels comparable to non-smokers after about four days. According to the study, the cotinine concentration went down from 294 ng/ml to 10 ng/ml on the fourth day in all participants.
How long is nicotine detectable in the blood?
As mentioned earlier, the blood test is the most reliable test to detect nicotine in the body. Here, too, the average was about ten days.
How can the degradation be accelerated?
In order for the body to break down nicotine faster, there are a few ways to speed up the process. Of course, you should first quit smoking with and give your body a break. Exercising in the fresh air, for example, helps to get nicotine out of the bloodstream faster, as exercise boosts the metabolism.
In addition, healthy foods are also suitable for reducing nicotine content. A balanced diet helps the body to regenerate itself.
How much nicotine is in cigarettes, e-cigarettes and snus?
A cigarette has an average of 7 to 20 mg/g of nicotine, the exact content depends on the brand. However, the body does not absorb the entire nicotine content , but only 1 to 2 mg/g per cigarette. The situation is similar with e-cigarettes, which contain an average of about 20 mg/g of nicotine. Again, not the entire proportion is included, but only a small percentage.
In snus, the nicotine content varies greatly, depending on the brand. One of the strongest brands on the snus market is Thunder X WDP with a nicotine content of 45 mg/g. On average, most products have about 7 to 10 mg/g of nicotine, such as General Classic with 7.8 mg/g of nicotine. There are even snus products that are completely free of nicotine, such as Edel CBD Mint.
The body does not absorb all the nicotine, but on average about 30% of the effective nicotine content in tobacco snus and about 50% in all white snus.
Conclusion
How long nicotine can be detected in the body depends on the length and amount of smoking. In heavy smokers, nicotine can be detected in the blood, saliva or urine for about 10 to 30 days after quitting smoking, while in occasional smokers, the body needs an average of four days to bring concentration to a normal level.
Sources:
https://www.helpster.de/wie-lange-bleibt-nikotin-im-blut-wissenswertes-zu-nikotin_114055
https://snuzone.com/blogs/infos/wie-lange-bleibt-nikotin-im-korper
https://praxis-welling.de/leistungen/labordiagnostik/nikotinnachweis-cotinin/
