Stop Smoking - Poll

[DavyR]

OK it's said that smoking damages health, but why stop one-thing without the other, especially when the other is the biggest social offender.

 

Good point, but although heavy drinking can be as bad for your health as smoking, light drinking can be positively good for you (or at least neutral in effect). There are no beneficial effects to be had from smoking, at any level, however low.

[M.P]

Good point, but although heavy drinking can be as bad for your health as smoking, light drinking can be positively good for you (or at least neutral in effect). There are no beneficial effects to be had from smoking, at any level, however low.

 

 

True, no harm in a little drink.

 

Don't know about the smoking. Herbal cigarettes have NO nicotine, written on the packet, they must be like a little drink, surely doing no-one any harm.

[DavyR]

True, no harm in a little drink.

 

Don't know about the smoking. Herbal cigarettes have NO nicotine, written on the packet, they must be like a little drink, surely doing no-one any harm.

 

Probably not as harmless as you might think, unfortunately:

 

Title

Novel tobacco products and herbal cigarettes: Implications for prevention.

Source

Behavior Therapist, Jan 2004, vol. 27, no. 1, p. 15-17, ISSN: 0278-8403.

Author(s)

Kenela-Tracy.

 

Abstract

Cigarette smoking is the largest preventable cause of death in the United States, claiming more than 430,000 victims a year. Many smoking prevention programs have been established within the past 15 years that have been successful in reducing smoking initiation among teenagers. Traditionally, only commercial tobacco cigarettes are targeted within these programs. However, incorporating novel tobacco products and herbal cigarettes into existing smoking prevention programs may be useful in preventing the future consumption of these products. In order to prevent consumers from perceiving that herbal cigarettes, alternative tobacco products, and nontobacco products are healthier alternatives to tobacco, they should be educated about the effects of inhaling smoke of any sort. Consumers should be made aware that all cigarettes, regardless of whether they contain tobacco, produce tar and carbon monoxide upon combustion and inhalation, which is harmful to health. They should also be made aware that because of the lack of research on the effects of inhaling smoke from novel tobacco products and herbal cigarettes, there are unknown risks associated with inhaling gases created by the combustion of herbs, flavorings, and other additives that are present within these products. More research on the effects of novel tobacco products and herbal cigarettes is needed in order to better assess the health risks associated with these products. (PsycINFO Database Record © 2005 APA, all rights reserved).

[M.P]

Probably not as harmless as you might think, unfortunately:

 

Title

Novel tobacco products and herbal cigarettes: Implications for prevention.

Source

Behavior Therapist, Jan 2004, vol. 27, no. 1, p. 15-17, ISSN: 0278-8403.

Author(s)

Kenela-Tracy.

 

Abstract

Cigarette smoking is the largest preventable cause of death in the United States, claiming more than 430,000 victims a year. Many smoking prevention programs have been established within the past 15 years that have been successful in reducing smoking initiation among teenagers. Traditionally, only commercial tobacco cigarettes are targeted within these programs. However, incorporating novel tobacco products and herbal cigarettes into existing smoking prevention programs may be useful in preventing the future consumption of these products. In order to prevent consumers from perceiving that herbal cigarettes, alternative tobacco products, and nontobacco products are healthier alternatives to tobacco, they should be educated about the effects of inhaling smoke of any sort. Consumers should be made aware that all cigarettes, regardless of whether they contain tobacco, produce tar and carbon monoxide upon combustion and inhalation, which is harmful to health. They should also be made aware that because of the lack of research on the effects of inhaling smoke from novel tobacco products and herbal cigarettes, there are unknown risks associated with inhaling gases created by the combustion of herbs, flavorings, and other additives that are present within these products. More research on the effects of novel tobacco products and herbal cigarettes is needed in order to better assess the health risks associated with these products. (PsycINFO Database Record © 2005 APA, all rights reserved).

 

 

Interesting article. However i think someone is going a little over the top when you read the part as follow.

 

Quote:

They should also be made aware that because of the lack of research on the effects of inhaling smoke from novel tobacco products and herbal cigarettes, there are unknown risks associated with inhaling gases.

 

 

Why bother with trying to find out what a little puff of smoke might do to our health, yet it's good enough for us to walk the street's inhaling vehicle fumes and pollution from BUSES, LORRIES, CARS etc, not to mention the house being filled with smoke from the neighbors garden fire during the summer months when you have your windows open. Should we ban the BBQ, or camp fire? all that smoke we inhale while cooking...lol.

Oh! and don't forget the heath fires and the farmers fields being burnt off, cough.cough.

 

Boy I'm glad I'm 60 and not 16. Still in perfect health, and very fit, well apart from a broken vertebra in my spine, but can't blame that on fags, which i have happily indulge for about 50 out of my 60 years of life. Can't see that they have done me any harm what so ever. Most of my family lived until their late 80's, except my granddad, he drowned at sea, with his pipe..lol. My mum, now 85, still going strong, smoked all her life, same as the rest of the family.

 

At least we have paid our fair share in taxes, burnt a few quid i suppose, but who cares, if it never went on fags it would have gone elsewhere.

 

I will stick with what i say, Smoking has never damaged MY health, not yet anyway, well! apart from burning my fingers on the odd occasion.

OK, other people might not be so lucky, but then, that could apply to riding a motorcycle, driving a car, swimming, boating etc, all can damage your health one way or an other.

[Steve Walker]

As far as herbal cigarettes go, it's quite likely that they are bad for you. The key thing for me, though, is whether they contain nicotine or are otherwise addictive. If they aren't, well, it's just another risky behaviour people can easily stop doing.

[M.P]

As far as herbal cigarettes go, it's quite likely that they are bad for you. The key thing for me, though, is whether they contain nicotine or are otherwise addictive. If they aren't, well, it's just another risky behaviour people can easily stop doing.

 

 

Well according to the packets they are free from nicotine, and the health shop also says they are much safer and healthier to smoke, also a lot cheaper compared to normal cigarettes.

The fact that they are nicotine free means that your body starts to crave for a real smoke, maybe a nicotine patch could help to cure this. The best thing is, your hands are happy doing what they are use to and you won't find yourself fidgeting, twisting your hands about etc, this is a great help.

 

The menthol brand are quite nice, taste like normal menthol cigarettes, but still smell a bit weird. After a while the smell is much nicer then standard tobacco smells.

 

I smoked them for three months, found no problem at all in changing over, trouble was i smoked 60 a day and it was costing me far more money then hand rolling tobacco. The herbal hand-rolling tobacco is useless.

[Steve Walker]

Well according to the packets they are free from nicotine,

 

So they aren't likely to be addictive. Good...

 

and the health shop also says they are much safer and healthier to smoke, also a lot cheaper compared to normal cigarettes.

 

Hmm, nicotine is responsible for some of the harmful effects of smoking, but not all. You're still likely to be inhaling tar and carbon monoxide.

 

 

The fact that they are nicotine free means that your body starts to crave for a real smoke, maybe a nicotine patch could help to cure this. The best thing is, your hands are happy doing what they are use to and you won't find yourself fidgeting, twisting your hands about etc, this is a great help.

 

Or possibly used with Zyban.

 

The menthol brand are quite nice, taste like normal menthol cigarettes, but still smell a bit weird. After a while the smell is much nicer then standard tobacco smells.

I smoked them for three months, found no problem at all in changing over, trouble was i smoked 60 a day and it was costing me far more money then hand rolling tobacco. The herbal hand-rolling tobacco is useless.

 

Interesting. I've never seen them on sale, where did you buy them from?

[M.P]

Interesting. I've never seen them on sale, where did you buy them from?

 

 

 

I think most health shops stock them, Holland & Barrett definitely stock them, that's a national health care shop.

Edited December 18, 2005 by M.P

[DavyR]

This business of smoke and how it can damage you is quite interesting. There appears to be a big difference between environmental smoke (so long as it doesn't contain particulates, which enter the lungs quite easily) and smoke that you inhale at close quarters as in smoking, or breathing in sidestream smoke (passive smoking).

 

A lot of lung disease before house chimneys were in general use was caused by inhaling wood smoke from fires used for cooking and heating indoors.

 

M.P. and his family don't appear to have been damaged by smoking, but they obviously have strong genetic protection against this sort of damage. This is our old friend, Anecdotal Evidence once again - evidence that can't be applied to the population at large, only selected individuals.

 

Perhaps advances in genetics will eventually identify who these individuals are, using a quick, cheap test - that'd be a good marketing opportunity for the tobacco companies!

 

Oh, btw, it's now illegal for farmers to burn off stubble from their fields, following several RTAs caused by smoke drifting across public highways...(and 1 or 2 deaths of farmers who got caught up in their own fires).

[Now there's a right un.]

The highland council have announced that they are going to give any of there staff that quit smoking £50.

 

Now am I correct in thinking that it is my money they are going to be paying them with? I certainly do not recall them asking me if they could.

 

What do you think?

 

 

 

 

I think the money could be better spent somewhere else.

 

 

If smoking is so bad why doesn't government ban it?

 

I am an Ex Smoker. Will power alone, no patches, no gum just woke up and thought give it up. Mind you I can start and stop for fun, much to the annoyance of my wife...