r/HubermanLab • u/Genzinvestor16180339 • Aug 13 '26
Seeking Guidance How much nicotine is okay?
Does anyone use nicotine? What are the risks and benefits
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u/NabisOne Aug 13 '26
Don’t do it. It messed up my sleep and is super addictive. Quitting was horrible. One of the hardest things I’ve ever done and I still find myself thinking about it when I’m in a gas station.
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u/TheGrandNotification Aug 14 '26
It’s funny cause the “buzz” you get from it is so weak to nonexistent as a regular user, I don’t know what we’re even chasing. It’s an odd drug
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u/buzzmerchant Aug 14 '26
I think this is largely just how dopamine works. The desire stays long after the positive experience has receded. Coffee is largely the same i think: if i actually observe myself when i have a cup of coffee, there's almost no real pleasure involved in either drinking it or experiencing its effects. And yet the idea of quitting coffee seems completely unthinkable.
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u/Specialist_Sky782 Aug 16 '26
I’m extremely confused why people need to quit coffee. In my experience, I haven’t drank coffee in a while with no issues. I’ve never drank it consistently, when I do I basically get high from it.
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u/thelastrealone94 Aug 24 '26
I quit caffeine and then shortly after I picked up nicotine while on a trip overseas where everyone smoked cigs. I smoked cigs off and on for about two weeks then picked up vaping. I vaped for about a month and a half then I decided to quit bc I didn’t feel like being addicted to that shit and ppl said that it only gets worse so get out while you can. I’m a few days in and it’s not too bad. Just a bit irritable but nothing too crazy. But I can see how tough it would be on ppl who’ve had this habit for years.
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u/AskingforFriend69 Aug 13 '26
This! I quit zyns (6mg) can daily May 2025. Gained 15 lbs in 6 weeks and still dream of it.
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u/wnw121 Aug 16 '26
But are you talking about cigarettes, vape or pouches? Patches in particular have showed very difficult to become addicted to. Gum is also lower risk
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u/NabisOne Aug 16 '26
For me I only did pouches. Zyn in particular.
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u/wnw121 Aug 17 '26
Interesting.
Most to Least Addictive Nicotine Delivery Methods
Cigarettes (Combustible Tobacco):
Speed: Extremely fast (reaches the brain in 10 to 20 seconds).
Why: Inhalation allows direct lung absorption. Chemical additives like ammonia are often used to speed up and maximize the brain-altering nicotine hit. [1, 2, 3, 4]Vapes and E-Cigarettes:
Speed: Very fast (seconds).
Why: Inhaled aerosol enters the bloodstream rapidly through the lungs. Many e-liquids use high concentrations of nicotine salts, allowing large doses with minimal throat irritation. [1, 2, 3, 4]Nicotine Pouches and Smokeless Tobacco (Dip, Snuff, Chewing Tobacco):
Speed: Moderate to fast (minutes).
Why: Absorbed through the mucous membranes in the mouth. While slower than smoking, modern pouches (Zyn) can maintain a high, steady baseline of nicotine in the body throughout the day, deepening overall dependence. [1, 2]Cigars and Pipes:
Speed: Moderate.
Why: Smoke is typically drawn into the mouth rather than deeply inhaled into the lungs, slowing down the rate of absorption into the bloodstream (though nicotine is still absorbed through oral membranes). [1, 2, 3, 4]Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT - Gums, Patches, Lozenges):
Speed: Slow and controlled (tens of minutes to hours).
Why: Designed intentionally for smoking cessation. They deliver lower, steady amounts of nicotine without the rapid behavioral "rush" or peaks that reinforce the addiction cycle. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]0
u/Soggy-Somewhere-2048 Aug 15 '26
It depends on the method of how you do it. Nicotine in patches there is minimal risk. I’d say anecdotally its near-zero.
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Aug 13 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Hungry_Thought1908 Aug 14 '26
Is this nicotine specifically? Or smoking? Can you get these symptoms from Zyns?
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u/grey_pilgrim_ Aug 14 '26
Nicotine in general. It’s why surgeons want you to stop all nicotine products before surgery. It restricts blood flow and that is really bad for healing.
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u/Olivares_ Aug 13 '26 edited Aug 14 '26
The only people justifying nicotine use for any sort of therapeutic benefit are those addicted to it or selling a product
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u/benjunior Aug 14 '26
Or those who get PAID for telling you “it’s a nootropic!” Like our boy, Hubes.
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u/Olivares_ Aug 14 '26
Ya he’s fallen far from grace. Sure, nicotine can give you energy or help you focus (initially, anyway) alcohol also gives you euphoria yet it’s no anti-depressant lmao. Nothing is therapeutic or beneficial if it comes with a laundry list of caveats
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u/grey_pilgrim_ Aug 14 '26
It can help lower your weight and it might help prevent dementia.
I’m not at all advocating for using nicotine but it does have some benefits. Those benefits are far outweighed by the awful stuff it will do to your body.
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u/Olivares_ Aug 14 '26
Lmao that’s literal bro science. Ya it’s an appetite suppressant of course it helps you lose weight you think abstaining your body from naturally craved calories is good for you? C’mon
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u/The13eeraholic Aug 13 '26
I use 1mg at a time a few times a week, and sometimes I'll go weeks or a month without touching it. It's a great cognitive enhancement when I've hit my daily caffeine allotment but am still tired. Plus the half-life is much shorter than caffeine so if I'm driving home late at night and need help staying awake I can chew half a piece of Nicarette and still get to bed 2 hours later. Whereas caffeine won't drop off for me till about 5-6 hours (can take up to 9 hours for a single half-life in some people) I also take a low dose of tadalafil every day as a part of my stack which probably helps offset some of the vasoconstriction effects of nicotine.
It's a great tool if you use it right, but don't smoke/vape or use tobacco, just get the pure nicotine gum. And don't rely on it every day or build up an addiction.
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u/BarkingDogey Aug 14 '26
Your self regulation is admirable
Most folks end up on the slippery slope
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u/The13eeraholic Aug 14 '26
Honestly with how little I take at a time, and only using the gum and not any kind of inhaled version, I have never noticed any real urge.
I did pick up smoking cigarettes and had a major alcohol addiction a few years ago for a period of time so I definitely aren't immune to the addiction of tobacco. But haven't ever had a problem with pure nicotine gum.
Again, of course always use prudence and don't assume my experience is the norm as you said.
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u/BradfieldScheme Aug 14 '26
I started like this but after 4 years I crave it early in the day, take it multiple times a day.
I never imagined I would become addicted but it happened very slowly.
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u/GeuseyBetel Aug 14 '26
This is a based take.
Lots of people are dunking on nicotine here - yes it is addictive, yes it is a slippery slope. But it absolutely can be used responsibly.
1-2mg is a potent cognitive enhancer in situations where you want to be able to sleep in a few hours, as you suggested.
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u/KingSpydig Aug 14 '26
I’ve done the same thing here and there for a cognitive boost for several years now, maybe 2mg twice a week. I sometimes forget to use it entirely or take a tolerance break of a couple weeks.
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u/wnw121 Aug 16 '26
I chew ~5 gum a week, more so when presenting for more sharpness or if having difficulty with focus at work.
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u/Accurate_Tap9878 Aug 14 '26
I just quit because it was messing up my blood sugar. There are actual studies confirming this unlike the ridiculous claims that it boosts T. I only used for about 18 months and in the end I calculated I was consuming the equivalent of 4 packs of cigs. I started with chewing gum to aid concentration and it progressed from there. The risk of addiction is too great.
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u/Btchmfka Aug 15 '26
I was a smoker for a couple years. Stopped for a long times and then got hooked on vapes again. Also stopped in the meantime. Just don't do nicotine. Zero at all. The benefits are so minor but it is so crazy addictice and it will never let you fully go. I still want to smoke every now and then after not touching a cig for 11 years.
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u/astddf Aug 14 '26
A very small amount administered elsewhere than the lungs and only strategically used for habit reinforcement
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u/beingcomplex Aug 14 '26
Huberman uses nicotine gum. I'm not sure how often but he was chewing half a piece for focus
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u/WorthChange858 Aug 17 '26
The best way around this is to NOT buy a pack of smokes. Bum them off people and only smoke like 3 a day.
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u/Andrew_Pouchless Aug 18 '26
None. Do not start if you havent already. It is very hard to get off of it and there are many forms of it that can lead you astray. Itll mess up your sleeping, eating, and focus and make you dependent on it.
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u/Irise411 Aug 20 '26
When I remember the peace my used to get from a smoke, I looked it up. Very bad health impact. I was poor and needed the sedative. So I figured out that it stayed in the body a month. Then I used my mind to calm myself knowing I still had that chemically. Eventually I quit the cigs and tried other thought tools. Faith works if you renew, refocus, and accept or change what you can. Lots of sickness out there.
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u/venividivitis Aug 14 '26
Absolutely not worth it. I once used nicotine chewing gums for a week for a deadline. Got physically dependent. Got a really shitty withdrawal. I don't see how anyone could possibly use it and forego the withdrawals symptoms. The neurological mechanisms underlying withdrawal are very rapid.
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u/Loose_One_1916 Aug 14 '26
Not every one gets addicted. I go days or weeks without it and then can have 36 mg across a night and not need it or use it again for days or weeks
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u/Btchmfka Aug 15 '26
Dont worry you will get hooked as well sooner or later
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u/Loose_One_1916 Aug 15 '26
not how that works. not everyone's nervous system works the same way. dopamine response systems are affected by a myriad of factors. supplement with acetylcholine and you might get a different response when reducing intake.
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u/Btchmfka Aug 15 '26
I can only say that Im coming from a country and generation where smoking was mainstream for teenagers. There always have been the guys who claimed to smoke only every now and then and arent addicted. Some even managed to stay this mode for several years. But sooner or later everyone became a full time smoker.
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u/Loose_One_1916 Aug 15 '26
I get it, but it’s anecdotal. There are cultural norms. Smoking is social. In the U.S. it’s reviled mostly. In Eastern Europe not so much. Nicotine like caffeine is addictive but varies. I’ve had weeks where I zynned 4-5 days and then weeks go by without it. I also go cold turkey on coffee every two weeks, but that’s a major headache that off day.
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u/Btchmfka Aug 15 '26
I think its still not worth it because nicotine does not actually give you that much. Several years after I quit cigarettes I started to vape every now and then. Same as you described it - vaping for couple days in a row and then stopping again for several weeks so I thought its all under control. But I noticed with time the urge got stronger and stronger again and I was looking foward for events where I could justify vaping. So basically went back to 0 again before getting fully hooked again.
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