How does nicotine enter the bloodstream

[drjohn]

If I understand things correctly, with American dip/chew you get a nicotine rush because the blood vessels on the inside of your lip and gums absorb the nicotine from the tobacco, and BAM! there's the nicotine rush. So you don't have to swallow anything to get a buzz.

How does that work with snus? Is nicotine administered the same way, or does it work because you swallow the juice, and the nicotine enters the blood stream later on, 'downstream' so to speak? If you were to use snus and spit as if it were dip, would you get any nicotine at all?

(There's definitely less of a 'rush' feeling with snus, that's for sure.)

[sagedil]

Welcome to Snuson drjohn

Yeah, it's really straightforward. Nicotine enters the blood stream via the mucus membranes. Any nicotine freely gets through. I dated a girl a year plus ago with a heart condition. I had to quit snus while we dated as any nicotine in me would flow to her when we kissed. She was EXTREMELY sensitive to it.

[kevin32]

I always thought it was sublingual, but found out that only counts for under the toungue.

Haha sagedil, so you can get chicks addicted to kissing ya?

[sagedil]

There was a time. :lol:

[wa3zrm]

Can Nicotine be absorbed through the gums?

Yes. Nicotine is indeed administered via the inside skin of your mouth. Nicorette chewing gum, snus, and chewing tobacco itself, "just a pinch between the cheek and gum..." all work this way. The nicotine goes through the cells of the cheek and through those cells into nearby capillaries (teeny tiny blood vessels) and then into the veins, the heart, and then the heart will pump it all over the body from there.

The inside of the mouth is known as a *mucous membrane,* where capillaries are dense and chemicals can cross easily into the blood. The inside of the nose is also a mucous membrane, which explains why snorting cocaine gets it effectively into your circulation; same path as I just described. Rectal suppositories work the same way: the inside of the rectum is also a mucous membrane (I'm sure someone can make a good comment about this).

So, will absorbing Nicotine through your gums go straight to your head?

Nope. It's gotta go through the heart and the rest of the body first. So, swallowed snus juice is also absorbed from the intestines and travels throughout the blood stream too.

The higher the "nic" content a portion has, the faster and longer your reaction will be. Regular portions usually have 8 mg of nic. Strong portions range from 12 to 18 mg per portion.

Give Oden's Stark a shot. This is one of the strongest portions currently on the market. If you don't get a quick reaction from it, I will be amazed.

[snusjus]

Most of the nicotine from snus is absorbed by the mucous membrane lining the inside of your mouth. A smaller amount is absorbed by your intestines from swallowed juice.

[Snusdog]

drjohn wrote:

There's definitely less of a 'rush' feeling with snus, that's for sure.

drjohn, that is a great point and I think it is a very very important one. I dipped for over 20 years and I maintain that the vast majority of the "buzz" from dip is not from nic but rather from all the chemicals added to American tobacco. In fact, snus has a good bit more nic than the strongest American dip. However, what it is missing is all that other crap. And the absence of all that other crap is one of the main reasons that I am such a passionate apologist for snus.

[drjohn]

Thanks for the helpful answers

[sagedil]

See how useful Snuson is?? I do hope you stick around!!