Nicotine in cigarettes has long been a powerful appetite suppressant and many smokers have taken on the habit to lose weight. Now scientists have discovered the way that the substance works are hoping to create a new weight loss drug by harnessing the power that nicotine has.

A study done at Yale University reported that nicotine attaches itself to brain receptors that influence the desire for food. The researchers termed the pathway the hypothalamic melanocortin system. This was discovered through mice experiments.

Smokers generally have a lower body mass index and only gain 5.5 pounds when they quit the habit. Nicotine is known to have long term weight loss associated with it, according to the reports.

“In surveys, the number one reason teenage girls start smoking is to stay lean,” Marina Picciotto, lead author on the study said.
The study was published in the journal Sciece.

With NBC’s Biggest Loser, Lifetime’s Diet Tribe and VH1’s Celebrity Fit Club (just to name a few), weight loss is becoming a major form of entertainment in reality TV. Obesity is a major problem in the United States, but is this a good way to help the obesity problems we have in the US?

One of the reasons this country is overweight is TV and other sedentary activities that Americans take part in. In the amount of time it can take to be watching one of these shows, you could be running, playing a sport or doing something beneficial. Also, the results that the contestants are achieving are dramatic and are a result of diet and exercise, but they are unrealistic. People can’t just leave their work and families so that they can exercise six hours a day. It can be disappointing when you only lose 10 pounds instead of what you see on TV.

Experts worry that these shows could be doing harm for people when it comes to body image and eating disorders. It makes people feel like they can only achieve their goals if they have trainers like the ones on the shows or make them turn to unhealthy tactics to lose the weight. They may be sending the message, , “If you’re overweight then you should be unhappy with life and with yourself. You’re not good enough until you lose the weight.”

On the opposite side of the argument, seeing others lose weight may motivate them to get off the couch and exercise and eat right. It could make people think, ” If these regular, everyday people on TV achieve those results then so can I.” If you are uneducated on dieting, you could learn things from the show as well.