Key result
4 mg nicotine gum reduces heat pain versus placebo, independent of increased peak alpha frequency.
Why the study?
Peak alpha frequency has been linked to pain sensitivity, but whether alterations in peak alpha frequency can influence pain remains unclear.
Does 4 mg nicotine gum reduce pain sensitivity in healthy adults?
RCT (n=62)
double-blind
randomised
No
Does 4 mg nicotine gum reduce pain sensitivity in healthy adults?
Mean Difference: -0.62 (95% CI -1.21–-0.15)
p-value: p=0.023
Nicotine gum reduces heat pain sensitivity and increases peak alpha frequency in healthy adults, but the reduction in pain is not mediated by the changes in peak alpha frequency.
Nicotine analgesia for heat pain occurs independently of PAF shifts; challenges causal mediation by PAF and leaves mechanism open.
Recent research has linked individual peak alpha frequency (PAF) to pain sensitivity, but whether PAF alterations can influence pain remains unclear. Our study investigated the effects of nicotine on pain sensitivity and whether pain changes are mediated by PAF changes. In a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled experiment, 62 healthy adults (18–44 years) received either 4 mg nicotine gum (n=29) or placebo (n=33). Resting state EEG and pain ratings during prolonged heat and pressure models were collected before and after nicotine intake. The nicotine group had a decrease in heat pain ratings compared to the placebo group and increased PAF speed across the scalp from pre to post-gum, driven by changes at central-parietal and right-frontal regions. However, mediation analysis did not support the notion that PAF changes mediate nicotine’s effects on pain sensitivity. While a growing body of literature supports a link between PAF and both acute and chronic pain, further work is needed to understand the mechanisms of this link.
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Millard et al. (2025) conducted an RCT in healthy adults (n=62). Nicotine gum vs. Placebo gum was evaluated on Change in phasic heat pain (PHP) ratings (b = -0.62, 95% CI -1.21 to -0.15, p=0.023). Chewing 4 mg of nicotine gum significantly reduced prolonged heat pain ratings (b = -0.62) and increased peak alpha frequency speed compared to placebo in healthy adults, though the pain reduction was not mediated by the frequency changes.
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