Nicotine can increase metabolic rate by raising blood pressure, heart rate, and adrenaline levels. The absence of nicotine can lower metabolism, causing weight gain. It can take up to a year for metabolism to return to normal after quitting smoking or diving. Exercise and frequent, nutritious meals can help.
The presence of nicotine can increase a person’s basic metabolic rate while the sudden absence of nicotine can lower a person’s metabolism. The latter occurs in those who have recently quit smoking or diving, and it can take up to a year for the metabolism to return to its normal rate. The effects of nicotine on metabolism are a product of the increase in blood pressure and heart rate that occurs as nicotine enters the body and the increased production of adrenaline.
As nicotine enters the body, blood vessels constrict, increasing blood pressure and causing the heart to beat up to 20 times faster per minute. This increase in heart rate makes the body believe it is working harder than it actually is, thus increasing the base metabolic rate for up to 24 hours. Nicotine also causes a higher concentration of sugar in the bloodstream. This higher-than-normal amount of sugar in your blood causes a chain reaction in your body, causing it to think it has a food source, which can also boost your metabolism.
Metabolism can also be affected by the increase in adrenaline hormones released by the brain due to nicotine. Adrenaline also increases your heart rate, putting extra strain on your body and increasing your metabolism to compensate. This strain, which can be equivalent to up to 90 pounds (41 kilograms) of extra body weight, is why those who habitually use nicotine products are at higher risk for heart attacks and other cardiovascular health problems.
The sudden lack of nicotine in the body can also affect the metabolism. Once the metabolism has become accustomed to functioning based in part on the presence of nicotine in the body, its absence can cause the basic metabolic rate to drop to lower rates than it would have been without nicotine products. This effect of nicotine on metabolism is one of the many reasons people may gain weight soon after nicotine cessation.
Once a person stops smoking or diving, it can take up to a year for the metabolism to balance itself out and start functioning normally. This process can be sped up by exercise, which can produce some of the same metabolic effects as nicotine in a much healthier way; eating frequent small, nutritious meals is also helpful. These lifestyle changes, when made in conjunction with nicotine cessation aids such as nicotine gum or lozenges, can make any weight gain negligible and controllable as the body gets used to functioning without the effects of nicotine on metabolism.
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