Nicotine
The addictive substance. Not what kills you — what keeps you.
At a glance
- Also known as
- Nicotin · Nikotinsalze (Vape)
- CAS number
- 54-11-5
- Toxicity
High
- Carcinogenic
- Not classified for cancer
- In cigarette smoke
- 1.0-2.5 mg delivered per cigarette (ISO yield, varies by puff topography)
- In vape aerosol
- 0.5-2 mg per ml liquid (typical), Salt-Nikotin bis 20 mg/ml
What is Nicotine?
Nicotine is an alkaloid from the tobacco plant and one of the most strongly addictive substances known. Unlike many other tobacco toxins, nicotine isn't classified as carcinogenic — its main effect is activating the brain's reward system. In nicotine replacement products (patches, gum) it's considered therapeutically useful; in cigarettes it's the substance that keeps smokers smoking.
Why is Nicotine in cigarettes?
Nicotine occurs naturally in the tobacco plant — each cigarette actually delivers between 1.0 and 2.5 milligrams of nicotine to the smoker (exact values depend on pack labelling and individual inhalation pattern, ISO 3308). In vape liquids, nicotine is deliberately added, typically 3 to 20 milligrams per millilitre, in nicotine salt form for even faster absorption.
What Nicotine does to your body — short term
Nicotine reaches the brain about 7 to 10 seconds after inhalation. It binds to nicotinic acetylcholine receptors and triggers dopamine release in the reward system — the basis of addiction. Concurrently heart rate and blood pressure rise, peripheral vessels constrict, hands grow colder. After about 30 minutes the level drops again — the typical trigger for the next cigarette.
What Nicotine does long term
Chronic nicotine intake changes receptor density in the brain and is one of the main reasons unplanned quit attempts often fail. Cardiovascularly, repeated vasoconstriction can contribute to strain on the heart and circulatory system. In pregnancy, nicotine can disrupt fetal brain and autonomic nervous system development (sources: NHS, NEJM).
Where else do you know Nicotine from?
Long before nicotine became industrially valuable as an addictive substance, it was a classic pesticide — extremely effective and highly toxic to insects. Pure nicotine is acutely life-threatening for adults at doses of about 30 to 60 milligrams. A single vape liquid bottle often contains enough nicotine to kill a toddler — which has led to increasing poisoning cases.
How it compares
The workplace exposure limit for nicotine is 0.5 mg/m³ over 8 hours (DFG MAK). A single cigarette delivers one to five times this 8-hour limit in a few breaths — and multiple times daily, from morning to night.
Workplace exposure limit: 0.5 mg/m³ (DFG MAK, 8 h)
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