Styleforum › Forums › Lifestyle › Health & Body › Social Smoking
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Social Smoking

post #1 of 32
11/10/08 at 3:37pm
Thread Starter 
I was never really a heavy smoker. The most I ever averaged is a pack a week. And nowadays, its closed to pack every 3 months.

How harmful is smoking 5 cigarettes a month?

And also, is there alternative to smoking tobacco, legal alternative? Is there something I could smoke that wouldn't be harmful as cigarettes? I like the idea of lighting something up and blowing smoke.
Reply
Reply
post #2 of 32
11/10/08 at 7:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Young Scrappy View Post
And also, is there alternative to smoking tobacco, legal alternative? Is there something I could smoke that wouldn't be harmful as cigarettes? I like the idea of lighting something up and blowing smoke.

Cigars offer a different harm because you don't inhale...but if you're asking about cloves or "natural spirit" type smokes, I think the difference between cigarettes is negligible...

jag
Reply
Reply
post #3 of 32
11/10/08 at 8:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Young Scrappy View Post
How harmful is smoking 5 cigarettes a month?

More harmful than smoking 0 cigarettes for sure but, in the grand scheme of things, I wouldn't think it's that big a deal.

Some stats from one of my review books that I happen to have handy:

1. People who smoke 2 packs/day have a lung cancer risk 20x more than normal.

2. People who moke less than 1/2 pack/day have a death rate 30% higher than non-smokers. [You're smoking 1/2 pack every 2 months. That's a significant difference.]

I'm sure a web search might throw up some more info. To be honest, I'm not that well versed on light smokers but the number of cigs you're talking about really doesn't seem like it would be an issue. If you live in a major city, you probably inhale more crap than that from car exhaust.
Reply
Reply
post #4 of 32
11/10/08 at 9:28pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jumbie View Post
More harmful than smoking 0 cigarettes for sure but, in the grand scheme of things, I wouldn't think it's that big a deal.

Some stats from one of my review books that I happen to have handy:

1. People who smoke 2 packs/day have a lung cancer risk 20x more than normal.

2. People who moke less than 1/2 pack/day have a death rate 30% higher than non-smokers. [You're smoking 1/2 pack every 2 months. That's a significant difference.]

I'm sure a web search might throw up some more info. To be honest, I'm not that well versed on light smokers but the number of cigs you're talking about really doesn't seem like it would be an issue. If you live in a major city, you probably inhale more crap than that from car exhaust.

Thanks, I've been looking for some quantitative info before I made this thread but it's hard to come by but I do follow your logic.
Reply
Reply
post #5 of 32
11/11/08 at 6:50pm
I really can't understand why you would want to smoke...I like my lungs, my young complexion, and I do not look forward to being hooked up to a respirator. Have you ever seen someone die of lung cancer. The worst is when you see an attractive girl smoking..I just want to show her a picture of what she'll look like in 10 years..yellow teeth YUCK! I'll take my pearly whites any day over a stupid cancer stick. Just my $.02.
Reply
Reply
post #6 of 32
11/11/08 at 8:53pm
Thread Starter 
I hear you bro but the problem is I like smoking. Who likes giving up what they enjoy completely? And kind of like eating junk food or alcohol, I was thinking it wouldn't be bad for you if you indulge once in a while. Essentially, I was looking for tolerable monthly rate that would allow your body to recover between cigarettes with any permanent health or aesthetic effects but maybe that's voodoo biology. I was hoping to have my cake and eat it too.

I can easily quit but I don't want to if I don't have to.
Reply
Reply
post #7 of 32
11/11/08 at 9:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lucky7 View Post
Have you ever seen someone die of lung cancer.

One of the pulmonary fellows (doc that's finished internal medicine specialty and is now training to be a pulmonologist) at my hospital smokes like a chimney. Several other docs and nurses do as well.
Reply
Reply
post #8 of 32
11/11/08 at 9:21pm
I'm an occasional drunk smoker, and when you throw in the occasional j, it comes out to 3 or 4 packs a year. Pretty sure that's not gonna kill me.
Reply
Reply
post #9 of 32
11/12/08 at 1:14am
Quote:
Originally Posted by MetroStyles View Post
I'm an occasional drunk smoker, and when you throw in the occasional j, it comes out to 3 or 4 packs a year. Pretty sure that's not gonna kill me.

i hope so, because my smoking habits are pretty much the same as yours. i wonder what the actual statistics are though...
Reply
Reply
post #10 of 32
11/12/08 at 1:37am
I'm guessing that there's little harm in social smoking, but the risk is that it develops into full-blown nicotine addiction. Kind of like being a social crack cocaine or heroin user.
Reply
Reply
post #11 of 32
11/12/08 at 3:08am
Quote:
Originally Posted by boo View Post
I'm guessing that there's little harm in social smoking, but the risk is that it develops into full-blown nicotine addiction. Kind of like being a social crack cocaine or heroin user.

Bad analogy. Social drinker (similar addictive property), or perhaps social reefer smoker (also a bad example, because its psychological not physical), is more applicable. Crack and heroin create very interesting addiction patterns, as even after a single use the body seems to crave the drug. Its not like with nicotine where you get headaches, and other symptoms, its more like the body saying "give me more crack, or I WILL let you die".


It's best not to use tobacco products at all, but for those of us who do harm reduction is a good rout. Cigars, pipes, snuff, and/pr snus instead of cigarettes and/or dip. For those who must smoke or dip, a container a month is better than a container a day.
Reply
Reply
post #12 of 32
11/12/08 at 4:04am
Quote:
Have you ever seen someone die of lung cancer.

Have you ever seen someone die of anything?

It's never pleasant...and completely unavoidable anyway, so it makes for a rather weak threat.

My only advice to "social' smokers....don't be a mooch...buy your own.
Reply
Reply
post #13 of 32
11/12/08 at 4:05am
Quote:
Originally Posted by MetroStyles View Post
I'm an occasional drunk smoker, and when you throw in the occasional j, it comes out to 3 or 4 packs a year. Pretty sure that's not gonna kill me.

I smoke at pretty much the same rate. I can smoke 4-5 cigs on a big drinking night and none for the next few weeks. I used to smoke more regularly but at most only 5-6/day and quit more than 10 yrs ago. I still enjoy it in very small doses and only in very specific situations.
Reply
Reply
post #14 of 32
11/12/08 at 5:31am
I doubt very seriously that 5 cigarettes a month is going to cause any harm beyond being a fire hazard. It might also be annoying to people around you that don't like smoke. I haven't made an effort to find any studies evaluating such light social smoking as I doubt they exist. If you really enjoy it and can/will KEEP it at that limit, I don't think it will have any great negative impact on your life. I personally can't stand smoking. I never stuck with it long enough to get past the "throwing-up" stage.
Reply
Reply
post #15 of 32
11/12/08 at 8:19am
I socially smoke about 5/week, usually on the weekends when I'm out partying. I consider myself a "heavy social smoker" since I'm the one who smoke most cigarettes among my friends. Sometimes I can smoke up to a pack on a single evening...but then I usually had a very stressful week, or its just a very boring night out..

I sometimes smoke when Im having coffee at a cafe but that rarely happens...the smoke thing that is.
Reply
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Health & Body
Styleforum › Forums › Lifestyle › Health & Body › Social Smoking