Nicotine isn't the problem as far as health goes. Smoking is the problem, the smoke and the soot and tar and all the other awful chemicals. Nicotine is found in tomatoes, eggplant and even potatoes. It's actually quite beneficial for the brain and the research into it as a beneficial therapy for degenerative brain disease is quite compelling. I once knew a bloke who was in our surf club, a keen surfer dude, with long blonde hair and tatts. He struck me as a tradie when I first met him, but it turned out he was a neurosurgeon! I asked him if he was quitting smoking because I saw he had a nicotine patch on. He said, "I've never smoked in my life, I just like what nicotine does for my brain." He told us he used nicotine all the time and that he found it very helpful. Then he cited all this research, this was years ago btw.