The Nicotine theory !!

HI Guys,

Wonder if anyone has heard how nicotine is supposed to be beneficial to people with UC or if anyone has tried patches or gum as i am thinking of giving it a go.

While im not a smoker but my girlfriend is i had a couple of cigarettes of her over the weekend and during those days and a few days after my BM where brilliant really well formed and no urgency now maybe this is just a mental thing inside my head or i was just having good days but i think it might be worth a try.

Please feel free to share your experiences.

thanks

If you go and type this subject in the search box you will see alot of info on this. While it seems that it is better for ex smokers....some non smokers on this board have had success w/ e-cigs, nicotine gum etc.... There seems to be a connection between smoking and not getting UC or UC getting into remission. I know, strange. I find this one of the strangest things about this disease.
B

nicotine binds to certain receptors that regulate signals in the immune system or inflammation process. in this respect its mechanism of action is similar to LDN, although different receptors are involved.

unlike LDN, nicotine is bad for your heart. for some a little bad, for others very bad. But, lots of the meds have toxic effects for some people too.

one way or another you roll the dice.

I gave up a pack a day smoking 20 years ago when I developed early signs of COPD.  I then went on to contract athsma a few years later, then UC in '06.  I've got the asthma under control but have never been able to reach anthing near remission with UC.     A few years ago I tried the nicotine patches for a couple of weeks to no avail.   If I recall correctly, I started with the lower dose (10mg?) and they gave me weird nightmares.   When I kicked up to the higher (20mg?) patches, I got the most horrible vivid screaming nightmares where I would wake up in cold sweats.   I promptly stopped them after a few nights and not only for my wifes sake I might add. 

So nicotine itself did nada for me.  As Garylouis said, I think it maybe a combo of nic and the many other chemicals that go into smokes, although I'm not sure about CO.   I'm (semi-retired) in the gas appliance home safety inspection authority and I'm regularly 'exposed' to CO.    Carbon Monoxide is more to be feared and respected than any other products of combustion.   I've seen the aftermath of what it can do to people.

Derby, one earlier thread actually endorses smoking a few cigs a day, with varying results, I would try that route first. (as you have clearly started!)

I was a smoker but quit many years ago.
After seeing some earlier discussion on the subject, I bought the clear NicoDerm CQ (14) patches 2-week Kit because there was a sale and coupon. Normal cost $53.
The patches contain 14 mg of nicotine so I cut one in half and gave it a try. Made me feel dizzy so haven't repeated the experience.

I used one of the patch products 20 years ago to quit and it was effective.

I tried quitting smoking around the time I got UC. I was pregnant and had gave up the habit for about 8 weeks. Then after the miscarriage, all the antibiotics, and this dumb disease rearing its ugly head, I picked the habit back up.
I'm in the process now of trying to give it up again....even if it makes my UC worse. I'd rather just deal with this evil UC without adding some lung cancer on top of it.
But like Mackster said, those patches are something else. They gave me horrible nightmares and I had to stop using them. Right now I am trying an E-Cig kit my brother advised me to give a shot. Not to bad...and symptoms haven't got worse so that's a plus :)

Have to say that the healthiest years of my life were spent smoking... 17 years. I was sick all along as a kid - smoked from age of 13 and was healthy for the next 17 years. The past 9 have been full of diagnosis and problems all of which are due to an overactive immune system.... I always wondered why everything went away - even my allergies while I smoked. Now here I am - perfectly sober - not even alcohol... still more problems than I ever had.

I'm not a former smoker. Got into remission by starting an e-cig over 2 years ago.
Had 1 minor flare since then (due to running out of asacol) which got under control quickly with rowasa.
It's obviously not a cure, it clearly doesn't work for everyone, I'm not getting any CO, but it works for me.
I did hope, initially, to use it like we use prednisone (start it to get out of a flare and then taper off, use as needed) but when I've tapered a couple different times my symptoms started up again.
I've responded on several of the nicotine posts regarding how much and how often I use it, so I'm not going to rewrite all that.
Good luck with your active pursuit of feeling better.

Nicotine is a natural antihelmetic. When you stop smoking it can help aid any lurking nematode infection which I bet you money many of us have.. Namely Necator Americanus and Anclyostoma Duodenale. Because our issues are usually in the colon, we dont get as much looking upstream where they would be most likely to catch the worms. They are very very hard to catch on stool tests.

Just my theory.

I also started flaring the summer I quit smoking. I dont know if I picked up the worms then or had them since I was young as I had GI issues my whole life.. I suspect my whole life with how I reacted to prednisone...but something changed that summer.. I also had a round of cipro.. 5 years later everything flared again horribly after clindamycin/flagyl.

Ive often thought of picking up smoking again.. but think ivermectin & albenza would be more practical :)

Works for me, I’ve been in remission for going on four years now. As my signature suggests I use both e-cigs and Nicorette lozenges. Both seem to work, and it just depends on which is more convenient at any one time. I prefer the e-cigs because they are much less expensive and are more satisfying, but there are times when sucking on an e-cig is just not PC so I use lozenges then.

As neither produces any carbon monoxide, that theory does not seem to apply in my case. As I’ve said in the past, one size doesn’t fit everyone, and what works for me may not work for you.

Derby, I'm an ecig user for two yrs now, if I can reply until Wodin gets here?

Many users don't use disposables, that can get very expensive quickly.
We buy a rechargeable battery that can last a year, then the juice holder, then the nicotine juice.

How long they all last is up to the user. Could be $50yr. for a light user.
I vape all day all year and spend $200.

I get my batteries and atomizers from volcanoecigs.com
Atomizers can be rinsed, burnt out and reused, unlike cartomizers. Atomizers you have to add a few drops every dozen puffs or so, cartomizers have a filler inside that you saturate with liquid and then keep puffing till it needs more. No idea how long that would be.

Liquids I get from tastyvapor.us

I recommend finding a good forum (on whatever site you choose to purchase products from) and get on and ask questions, look around for a while and find out which device/system will work best for you.

I use it all day long, whenever I have a moment, and use both 24mg and 18mg nicotine liquids.

Atomizers can last me several weeks, then cleaned and used for several more. Some seem to die sooner than others.

Batteries should last a while but with anything electronic you may end up with a junk one every once in a while. I keep 2 batteries and 5 atomizers on hand.

I'm not sure how quick I go through liquids because my hubby shares. I think we end up buying 3 1-oz bottles every 4 weeks? Not sure. He doesn't vape all day though, just morning and evening. So that ends up being the biggest expense for us. But far cheaper than most meds!

thanks guys, great comment hekala cheaper than meds i'm with you on that one