NOT a stupid question, Ann. I just did a google search on "nicotine withdrawal and blood sugar". Here's what I found from two different sites:
[b]Nicotine and Insulin
It is thought that nicotine inhibits the release of the hormone insulin, which is responsible for removing excess sugar from a person's blood. The result can be that the smoker is slightly hyperglycemic, meaning they have more sugar in their blood than usual. High blood sugar acts as an appetite suppressant, which may be why smokers think their cigarettes reduce hunger. In the long run though, nicotine in the bloodstream increases the "bad" LDL cholesterol, which is thought to clog and harden arteries. That in turn will step up the risk of heart attack and stroke.[/b]
Site 2:
[b]It is not that cigarettes put sugar into your blood stream; it is more of a drug interaction of the stimulant effect of nicotine that affects the blood sugar levels. Cigarettes cause the body to release its own stores of sugar and fat by a drug type of interaction. That is how it basically operated as an appetite suppressant, affecting the satiety centers of your hypothalamus. As far as for the sugar levels, nicotine in fact works much more efficiently than food. If you use food to elevate blood sugar levels, it literally takes up to 20 minutes from the time you chew and swallow the food before it is released to the blood, and thus the brain, for its desired effect of fueling your brain. Cigarettes, by working through a drug interaction cause the body to release its own stores of sugar, but not in 20 minutes but usually in a matter of seconds. In a sense, your body has not had to release sugar on its own in years, you have done it by using nicotine's drug effect![/b]
Ann, I hope this helps. Try doing your own search...there's lots more!
Rusty :)
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