Hi Working - you're doing great you know. That rebel is a fine part of your self esteem I think! I love my rebel too and have no intention of wimping out and losing her power. I like an ad we have here on TV (just forget where it actually came from but the gist is: "Lose the smoke but Not the Fire!' That helped me - maybe you too? You're pacing well and getting info you need to be successful on your own terms. It's great to see you chart your progress. Cheers for you! Eyja
So, I've come across some very interesting information on this subject. You are correct that on average, about 1 mg (range is 0.3 - 2mg) of nicotine is absorbed in the body when smoking a cigarette.
The amount of nicotine absorbed in the system depends on route of delivery (smoking a cigarette vs. transdermal patch vs. lozenge for example..). Blood concentrations rise rapidly and peak at the end of smoking a cigarette (mostly due to the large surface area of the lungs).
On the other hand, when using an NRT such as a lozenge, much of the nicotine is swallowed and subjected to being metabolized by the body, thus nicotine is absorbed more slowly and levels rise more gradually in the blood compared to smoking.
You are absorbing approximately 80% of nicotine through a 4mg lozenge than you would smoking 1 cigarette.
I hope this helps answer your question and gives you a better idea of how they compare!
Great question! Just wish that I had an answer for you. Maybe one of the healthcare educators will be able to find this kind of technical answer for you. If using a lozenge every couple of hours works for you in cutting down, I'd stick with it! At least you are not inhaling those thousands of other chemicals while sucking on a lozenge! Continue on with your preparation and let us know when the big quit day is!
I'm not sure how the nicotine lozenge compares to a cigarette in terms of the nicotine I'm getting. I've read that the lozenge delivers a lower dose than a cigarette. Lozenges are 4 mg. Cigarettes are 9 mg. But I think they are absorbed at different levels, depending on route of delivery. (I also read somewhere that you only absorb about 1 mg of nicotine from a cigarette, but i could not find any information on how much is absorbed from the lozenge.) So I'm not sure what I'm getting. My main concern is not wanting to increase the nicotine dependence by using too many lozenges a day. Right now, I'm using about one every 2 hours. (They take an hour and a half for me totally dissolve, despite what I've read about it being 20-30 minutes.) When smoking all day, I was going through a pack a day. Is this comparable?
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I have however, gained several realizations and resisted many urges. 
