What's behind a nicotine addiction It is important to understand the factors that form an addiction, as well as exactly how nicotine works, in order to find an effective solution. There are many different psychological factors that numb towards addiction, but also physical factors. Smoking cigarettes has an apparent physical addiction component which becomes habit-forming, thus triggering behavioural addiction. ​​ Physical nicotine addiction creates a situation in which all you have to do to counteract the negative consequences is give your body time to flush the chemical out of your system. With the behavioural component, addiction becomes more complicated. The addicted brain has become wired to particular processes that frequently result in a pleasurable experience while inhaling cigarette smoke. This can cause unpleasant withdrawal symptoms when a person tries to quit. Why nicotine replacements may not work Tobacco contains nicotine, which is the main, most addictive chemical. When a person smokes tobacco, numerous parts of the body become accustomed to the presence of nicotine. When a person gives up cigarettes, they also give up nicotine, which causes withdrawal symptoms. This is due to the body's need to adjust to life without nicotine. Due to this, nicotine replacement products were created. Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) provides nicotine but not the other hazardous compounds found in tobacco in the form of gum, patches, sprays, inhalers, or lozenges. NRT can help you focus on the psychological (emotional) aspects of quitting by alleviating some of the physical withdrawal symptoms. However, because of the behavioural component of nicotine addiction, nicotine replacement therapy such as patches or gums…