Nicotine??? Smoking and seizures???

[Bernard]

And anything that results in a sudden lack of oxygen or a reduction in blood flow to the brain can cause a seizure.

http://kidshealth.org/parent/firstai...s/seizure.html

The surprising fact is that side-stream smoke has higher concentrations of noxious compounds than the main-stream smoke inhaled by the smoker. Some studies show there is twice as much tar and nicotine in side-stream smoke compared to main-stream smoke, as well as three times as much of a compound called 3-4 Benzopyrine, which is suspected to be a cancer causing agent. There is also 10 times as much carbon monoxide that robs the blood of oxygen and 50 times as much ammonia in second-hand smoke.
...
Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas contained in tobacco smoke. When you inhale carbon monoxide, it destroys oxygen molecules in your red blood cells. As the amount of carbon monoxide increases in your blood, the cells of the blood become starved for oxygen. One study shows that after only 30 minutes in a smoke-filled room, the carbon monoxide level in a nonsmoker's blood increases along with blood pressure and heart beat. ...

http://www.sa.psu.edu/uhs/healthinfo...dhandsmoke.cfm

[Solicitous]

Unfortunately, I still smoke. I do take Chantix for it. I seem to "space out" when I am smoking sometimes. Has anyone else experienced this and/or is there any documentation re: the link between smoking and seizure activity?

Hi Ziggy.

I am also a smoker at least a pack a day.

I have had episodes of coming out of church or functions where I couldn't smoke for a few hours.
Then having a smoke made me feel so dizzy and gave me the inability to even think straight, and I actually had to go down on my hands and knees to stop me from passing out. I don't know if I stayed standing if it would have brought on a drop seizure or that I would just faint. Very hard question to answer.

I did find some internet links that weren't consistent about the relativity between smoking and seizures.

I don't have a link, but I do remember a sight that stated that one should be cautious about quitting smoking with out a doctors help, that it can bring on a lot of stress, in which we all know what too much stress can cause.

Great post Ziggy!!
Take care.
Norm Beam

[summah]

I've read different things about whether or not nictotine affects seizures...but I found this on Wikipedia.com.

'Recent studies have indicated that nicotine can be used to help adults suffering from autosomal dominant nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy. The same areas that cause seizures in that form of epilepsy are responsible for processing nicotine in the brain.[72]

'

Thought that was kinda interesting....and semi-helpful...if they're right lol

[mel239]

When my plant went nonsmoking,I thought it would be a nightmare,I got chantix which my insurance wouldnt cover-it was too new.For me,worked great-10 hr shifts never even wanted one from the day I started.Since Ive been on LTMD I sit home alone with my little ones and started back up.Asked my doc about chantix and he said they dont prescribe it for people on anti-epileptic drugs

[Aubrey]

Pretty sure it is a trigger, but, when whether I smoke or whether I don't I "space out" I figure I might as well go outside and light up. For me it is a procrastination tool. I never considered asking a doctor for help, I just figure when one is ready to quit, stop buying them. Of course, I smoke < 1/2 pack/day.

[Inaara]

When my plant went nonsmoking,I thought it would be a nightmare,I got chantix which my insurance wouldnt cover-it was too new.For me,worked great-10 hr shifts never even wanted one from the day I started.Since Ive been on LTMD I sit home alone with my little ones and started back up.Asked my doc about chantix and he said they dont prescribe it for people on anti-epileptic drugs

Actually, a lot of doctors will not prescribe it at all anymore due to the overwhelming prevalence of negative side effects. That drug has a black box warning for very good reason. It did not affect me in that manner - in fact, Chantix worked very well for me until the VA decided they would no longer offer it - but literally every other person that I know who took Chantix save one (who also happened to be my cousin) had to stop taking the drug because the side effects that prompted the black box warning were so bad as to be debilitating for them and, in some cases, required hospitalization. If there is a bad, bad drug on the market, I would say that Chantix is it, even though I personally had absolutely no problem whatsoever with it.

[Kareen]

My 20 year old son smokes and yes he has the same thing happen to him,the reason behind it is because you are taking oxygen away from your brain,try nicorette patch,good luck.

[seizingbeauty]

I've been a smoker since I was 13 but my seizures didn't start til I was 19 (after the birth of my daughter). I haven't noticed a correlation between my smoking and my seizures but then again I was never looking. I smoke somewhere between 10 and 15 cigarettes on an average day. That number is lower in the winter as all my cigarettes are outside. I'll have to keep an eye on that and see what, if any difference there is.