Transitions in Smoking Behaviour and the Design of Cessation Schemes

Johan Grasman,Han L J Van Der Maas,Raoul P P P Grasman,Chris Bullen

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0047139

Johan Grasman, Han L J Van Der Maas + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0047139

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Abstract

The intake of nicotine by smoking cigarettes is modelled by a dynamical system of differential equations. The variables are the internal level of nicotine and the level of craving. The model is based on the dynamics of neural receptors and the way they enhance craving. Lighting of a cigarette is parametrised by a time-dependent Poisson process. The nicotine intake rate is assumed to be proportional with the parameter of this stochastic process. The effect of craving is damped by a control mechanism in which awareness of the risks of smoking and societal measures play a role. Fluctuations in this damping may cause transitions from smoking to non-smoking and vice versa. With the use of Monte Carlo simulation the effect of abrupt and gradual cessation therapies are evaluated. Combination of the two in a mixed scheme yields a therapy with a duration that can be set at wish.

Highlights

Nicotine addiction is a significant worldwide health problem
We present a dynamical model that focuses on three key variables that play a role in the development and persistence of smoking addiction
From a set of basic assumptions on nicotine intake,control and craving we derived a dynamical model for smoking consisting of a set of two coupled nonlinear differential equations

Summary

Introduction

Nicotine addiction is a significant worldwide health problem. We present a dynamical model that focuses on three key variables that play a role in the development and persistence of smoking addiction. The advantage of doing so lies in that we provide a level of explanation of prominent phenomena observed in nicotine cessation research. This approach promotes the understanding of transitions in smoking behaviour in terms of some well understood mechanisms from mathematical bifurcation theory applied to the attractor dynamics of a nonlinear system. Nicotine addiction arises from the dynamics of specific receptors on the membrane of neurons in the brain [1] When these socalled nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (NARs) are turned on, dopamine activity is enhanced leading in turn to a need of keeping nicotine in the body at a high level. Peers may as well stimulate the person to continue or (re)start smoking (negative control)

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