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Smoking?
Jeice
regular
regular
I basically want to know why smoking is bad for you.
I'm confused because there's different things you can smoke, e.g. cigarettes, cigars, marijuana and shisha.
Cigars - I've heard that these are stronger than cigarettes, but since you don't inhale the smoke, it's not bad for you. So, does this mean that if you don't inhale cigarette smoke, it's not bad for you?
Marijuana - I've heard that this is not as bad as alcohol, but you inhale it, so I don't understand why.
Shisha - I've heard this also has carcinogens, but there are shisha bars out there that let minors smoke it, so I think there's no possible consequence of smoking this stuff.
Cigarettes - I've heard all the bad stuff, but don't really know why. Is it basically since it's so full of crap that when you smoke it AND inhale it, it's just plain bad for you. Or, is it true that if you don't inhale, it's not as bad. Or is it always bad for you?
I'm confused because there's different things you can smoke, e.g. cigarettes, cigars, marijuana and shisha.
Cigars - I've heard that these are stronger than cigarettes, but since you don't inhale the smoke, it's not bad for you. So, does this mean that if you don't inhale cigarette smoke, it's not bad for you?
Marijuana - I've heard that this is not as bad as alcohol, but you inhale it, so I don't understand why.
Shisha - I've heard this also has carcinogens, but there are shisha bars out there that let minors smoke it, so I think there's no possible consequence of smoking this stuff.
Cigarettes - I've heard all the bad stuff, but don't really know why. Is it basically since it's so full of crap that when you smoke it AND inhale it, it's just plain bad for you. Or, is it true that if you don't inhale, it's not as bad. Or is it always bad for you?
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One of the things cigarettes do is cause cell mutation.
http://www.nature.com/bjc/journal/v95/n3/full/6603281a.html
What I have linked you to is a study that talks about DNA mutation in the lungs. Given that it also causes cell mutation in the lungs why wouldn't it occur in other mucus membranes of the body that have regular contact with smoke even if you don't inhale? Just sayin' it sounds plausible. Also I have yet to meet a smoker (myself included) that doesn't inhale. You will at some point or another.
As for the other stuff I'm sure others could explain it better then me.
i'm not touching this with a sixty foot pole.
The same goes for cigars and hookah -- you're still inhaling nasty shit right into your lungs, but if you're not doing it as frequently it isn't going to kill you.
Maybe for someone who is an infrequent smoker. I smoked a pack a day, thats 20 cigarettes which comes to 140 a week. I've known people to smoke as many as 4 packs a day (my grandmother for one).
Shisha tobacco is still bad for you. Basically breathing any sort of smoke(or smoke type thing) is bad for you, from woodsmoke to nasty smog stuff. This is why breathing this kind of nonsense irritates your lungs.
Cancer isn't the only thing you have to worry about when it comes to smoking, either. You have to consider that it can cause heart problems, strokes and a bunch of other nasty things.
not to mention all the wasted money and to have nothing in return for it
Steam
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I cannot think of a single person who has "thought" of starting to smoke. They do it because it's "cool" and then they're fucked from there.
Can trade TF2 items or whatever else you're interested in. PM me.
Cigars have more nicotine, but most of the transfer of the drug comes from the end of the cigar, and the lining in your mouth, cheeks and tongue. You're not inhaling directly, but you'll always get a little (ie second hand smoke from yourself). The smoke is very thick, and one tends to roll it around in thier mouth, to someone who likes cigars, the smoke itself tastes pretty good. They are a little bit bad for you, but not all that bad.
MJ doesn't affect people in the same way, and many people will state that they are more in control of themselves while partaking. It doesn't have the same effect on the central nervous system, which is what causes fine motor loss, making 'sloppy' drunks. Also, where alchohol is an actual bonofide toxin, a poison, THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, is not, and there is no real lethal dose.
For the most part, weed smoke is not as bad as cigarette smoke because cigarettes (and retail tobaccos)are chemically treated to burn evenly and effectively. This treatment is responsible for many, but not all, of the carcinogens present in the smoke, and since most weed is smoked raw, or untreated, the argument is that it is less harmful.
It is not however, 'unharmful', as any continued particle inhalant will have health effects on your lungs. Marijuana smoke does contain as many as 500 known carcinogenic substances, but many, many consumed substances do as well (i.e. diet soda) and studies are few and relatively inconclusive about the real effects pot smoke has in the long term.
Although this is still smoke, the smoke has been water filtered, removing a vast number of the particles. It is less harmful, and with no addictive herb and substance being smoked, it is non-addictive, rendering it as safe or safer than walking down down a sidewalk in heavy traffic. Which may not actually be as safe as you might think.
The point of cigarettes is to inhale them, putting the nicotine in your bloodstream. Nicotine effects how specific neurotransmitters in your brain function, and despite the dangers of inhaling the smoke, some of these effects are a net positive for many of its users.
It is only recently that an early or uncomfortable death, one of the possible side effects to smoking, has been inserted into the public conciousness as extremly undesirable, driving forward a change in popular thinking towards considering this side effect a net negative to all other possible benefits.
One of the reasons this side effect is so widespread, is because cigarettes are chemically treated to do many things, including the following: be easily lit, burn evenly, burn when damp, burn when cold, even nicotine transfer, complimentary taste, burn slow, burn less hot, and to self-extinguish when left smoldering. Even if untreated, however, such as in the case of many cigars, the smoke itself (much like any smoke) still contains hazardous properties, and is still health effecting when inhaled.
This.
Also, a 'pothead' would smoke more like a Joint or two a day. Someone that just 'smokes week occasionally" will do it once or twice a week.
Pothead = Someone who smokes a lot.
The only reason anyone smokes cigarettes ever is so they can look cool.
You heard it here.
Green'd for subject-appropriate truth. :P
There's a reason the song goes "smoke weed erryday" not "smoke weed once a week or so, just to unwind or have fun at a party, use it in moderation kids."
Can trade TF2 items or whatever else you're interested in. PM me.
Apparently! It's good to know I keep a pack of Luckies in my studio so I can look cool while I'm completely alone at three in the morning with a deadline looming.
Truthfully, it's because I smoked a couple of cigarettes recently because I was really stressed and needed something to relieve that stress. But, afterwards, I felt really guilty, but I wasn't sure why. Then, I realized that I was feeling guilty because I've been taught all my life that cigarettes are bad for you without really knowing why. And, I like to hear both sides of the argument before I make decisions.
I'm going to be completely politically-incorrect and say there are few pleasures as sublime as having a smoke.
The stinky fingers, yellow teeth, and smelly clothes, not to meantion, you know, CANCER, are all really big downsides. But the enjoyment of the actual act cannot be denied.
Whoever invents something that has all the upsides and none of the downsides of actual tobacco would be, like, richer than Bill Gates.
I once thought about starting during a particularly stressful time, but you have to go outside in Alberta to smoke, and that seemed like too much of a commitment for simple stress relief.
You guys smoke now to unwind, relax, focus, whatever. That's cool. Some people use caffiene, some use nicotine, some use chocolate, some use weed. Whatever floats your boat.
But did you start smoking with the intention of using it to relax?
There might be a handful of people like that (and I'm sure they'll be piping up momentarily) but peer pressure is a motherfucker, and that's what makes a lot of people cave.
Can trade TF2 items or whatever else you're interested in. PM me.
Edit:
I smoked my first cigarette because I was stressed out as fuck because some dumb girl decided to ram the rear axle of my first car with her boyfriend's huge sedan, totaling my car and hitting two others (one on her side of the road, the other she pushed my car into on the other side). It was very relaxing. Also I liked it. So I kept smoking. If people do not like smoking, I advise them not to smoke. I like smoking, so I'm going to have a cigarette with my espresso now.
:P
Well, you have to make your own decisions. I have talked to people on both sides of the smoking spectrum. Theres people genuinely like it and continue to do so (like VC), then there are the people who wish they could stop but can't (or get stuck in a vicious cycle of perpetual quitting) (like me). As a reforming smoker myself, there is nothing that can truly replace a good smoke; especially when your body is craving it. If there was one thing I could undo, it would be the knowledge of how cigarettes make you relax and how good it feels to satisfy that hunger.
This is important to note. When "quitting" friends try to bum cigarettes from me they are the only people I refuse. It can be very hard to quit even when you want to, and in the back of my mind there is always the risk that someone will manage to make me actually want to quit and I dread that day.
See, you're framing your point in such a way that it indicates those of us who did take up smoking without peer pressure being a factor are either
- atypical, or;
- liars.
I think the very fact that you're fully expecting at least a few of us to "pipe up" and insist we didn't take it up to look cool indicates that maybe -- just maybe -- a lot of people really do just start smoking because they want to. I think for everyone who says "my friends pushed me into it", there are going to be plenty of people who say, "I took it up because I heard it helps with stress," or "my grandpa really seemed to enjoy it, so I thought I'd give it a try," or "I really liked the aroma," or "I found tobacciana interesting," or...or some fucking idiot totaled my car that I loved and would still have today for no fucking reason and grah I want a fucking cigarette.
Anyway, I've been smoking for almost four years, and I am cutting back with the intention of quitting altogether in a week or two. It was good times, but I've been coughing up red/black/green things for weeks and the price of smokes is something like $6.02 now.
Are there healthier, more long-term ways to accomplish these goals? Definitely! But instant gratification is very seductive, and everyone thinks they only need it until they reach that goal. It's a hard crutch to let go of.
Well, cigars are very potent and unfiltered, that's why you don't inhale them. Also, cigars are more about the taste of the tobacco then the buzz. Cigarettes are generally smoked to get a buzz, so you generally inhale. Yes, you could not inhale cigarette smoke, but you won't feel anything then. Either way, not inhaling still can give you cancer in the mouth and upper parts of the throat.[/quote]
I assume by "alcohol" you meant "tobacco". Either way, generally you don't smoke as much weed as you do tobacco. Even the typical pothead smokes less than 20 joints in a day, which is the number of cigarettes in just one pack. Pot is bad for your lungs though, and inhaling smoke still can cause lung cancer. I should also note that excessive weed use can cause psychosis according to my psychiatrist bro-in-law, so there's that.
The water filters out a lot of the bad stuff, but the smoking part can still cause lung and throat damage. Also, most people smoke shisha waaay less than they do tobacco (you can't easily take a bong outside during work or at the airport or wherever).
To directly answer the OP, basically inhaling smoke in any form can cause cancer in the mouth (if you don't inhale), the throat (if you inhale and maybe if you don't, depending on how deep you hold the smoke in your mouth), and the lungs (if you do inhale). Other health problems are related to chemicals (such as in typical cigarettes). Nicotine strictly speaking is not that bad for you, but it's addictive. Tar and such are what kill you.
As a 12 year smoker who just quit, let me offer you a piece of advice. Burn a five dollar bill every day instead. You'll be much better off in the end.
I'll lime that and second as a 6 year smoker.
False.
I smoke (pack per 2 days about), and hell, I enjoy the fuck out of it... But given the option, I would never start to begin with. Obviously it's bad for you, but it does have some minor benefits. Stress relief, breaking up a boring workday, enhances highs, and you get a lot of social interaction. That said, OP, don't start smoking.
The water filtering isn't what is helping the smoke be less harsh, since there's no smoke at all. It just cools the vapor so it is more pleasant. I could be wrong about all this of course.
If you think that's false, VC, then you haven't been smoking long. Note that I'm talking about cigarettes here. I have no direct experience with pot though I strongly suspect longtime potheads view it the same as longtime smokers view smoking.
To the OP, let me put it this way. There are two undeniable truths about smoking and not to put too fine a point on it, anyone who denies these truths is lying to you and probably to themselves.
1) You might not be able to quit. Hell, I kept smoking for four years after my mom died of lung cancer. Four years!
2) If you smoke long enough, it will kill you. Something else might kill you first, you may die of old age, heart disease, you may get hit by a bus... but know that if you live long enough, smoking will kill you.
You may not get sick until you're 80. You may get sick and die when you're 50. There's no way to tell.
I've been smoking for five years. I liked it immediately, didn't have to force myself to do anything, though my flavor preferences have matured a bit to where I don't really like the brands I started on anymore, having discovered far more delicious brands as well as the practice of hand-rolling cigarettes from better tobacco than any manufacturer apart from Nat Sherman puts in their cigarettes. I've benefited from it greatly by way of something other than eating to do when I'm bored or just want something delicious in my mouth and really the social benefits have been the most beneficial of the benefits. I've met a lot of different sorts of people with varying views on everything who I wouldn't have otherwise talked to through smoking. I might have to quit eventually and don't look forward to that but while a lot of smokers I've known fit your description perfectly I've never been one and nor have several other smokers I've known.
Smoking is bad for you and I won't encourage anyone to do it, but I don't think telling people shit that isn't true is a good way to get them to make a decision the way you want them to. See: DARE and abstinence-only sex-education. There are plenty of perfectly good reasons not to smoke without making shit up, like the cost and the cancer.
I'm actually curious, has there been any substantial research done on moderate smoking? Say, pack-a-week or less? I'll smoke about that during the warmer months, but pretty much none at all during the winter because it's minnesota and who wants to go outside.
You're still destroying cells and damaging genetic material in cells increasing the odds of a mutation that is cancer happening. Just not as much as you would if you smoked two packs a day.
The reason cigarettes help with hay fever is because nicotine paralyzes the cilia in your lungs and throat. It's the same reason the first cigarette in the morning "cures" smoker's cough. I would think a cup of coffee and a Benadryl would be a more appropriate remedy.
The appropriate remedy is remembering to take my fucking claritin so I don't get an attack.
The effective remedy when I'm already in the middle of one is to light up. Smoking works in like 30 seconds. It's fucking magic.