Smoking

Your Nose Knows: The Invisible Threat of 'Thirdhand Smoke'

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/26/thirdhand-smoke-smoking-risks_n_938241.html


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While I do smoke, and therefore do not "preach against it" so to speak, I do not recommend it. To anyone. One day, I hope to be able to quit of my own free will. That being said, no one *should* smoke, Jedi included. We are all still human, however... so moderation in all things.

I quit cigarettes a couple weeks ago, haven't lapsed, and I'm not really tempted. That being said, I still smoke a pipe about once a week, as well as the very occasional cigar. My decision to quit was financial. Personally, I believe that smoking is not nearly as dangerous as is preached, but still unhealthy. Also, it made me feel tired and worn out. I have more energy and am a bit less depressed now that I've quit. Maybe I'm happy about having the extra money.

That being said, since so many people here are so devoted to defending weed, I feel I can defend tobacco. We all know that it can help one cope with stress and anxiety, be uplifting, and create a sort of tranquility, in most users, anyway. Smokers are less likely to be obese, also. That being said, I don't encourage anybody to pick up smoking, except for perhaps occasionally (yes, there are many occasional cigarette smokers, it's not all-or-nothing).

I hate smoking. I am always quitting and starting again. I will go a whole day not smoking and then after the weekend I will start again. I want to quit for good.

If people are trying to quit they might ask Wescli for advice, I know he managed to do it

I don't perceive any constraint regarding smoking that is inherent with being a Jedi, or Jedi aspirant. But from where I stand, it's not conducive at all to optimal human functioning.

I admit to bias due to personal experience. My maternal grandfather smoked, and died slowly of a stroke. My paternal grandfather smoked, and died of lung cancer. My mother smoked heavily, and lost her life due to heart disease - and though it's been over 15 years, the nicotine stain that adhered to nearly every white surface in her house, from walls to appliance interiors to dishware, still makes me wish I could avert my eyes. My father smoked, and succumbed to an unusual sort of brain tumor.

Virtually everyone I can think of in my family who has passed and did not smoke, lived years (and in most cases decades) longer than these people. Smoking tobacco regularly and consistently strikes me very much like taking a daily teaspoon of ammonia; it may not do much to you today, but twenty years from now it will not seem like such a good idea.

That said - once you're hooked, an addiction to tobacco is tough, and for some perhaps intolerable, to give up. I recall seeing a documentary on addictions once where one woman proclaimed, "I was hooked on cocaine, and gave it up. I was hooked on heroin, and gave that up too. I was hooked on alcohol, and beat it. But I can't stop smoking cigarettes."

All that considered, I'd urge you to give it up if you can. But your immediate sanity may be more important than an extra five or ten years of life, or the ability to run some distance without getting winded. If it's too overwhelming, I wouldn't hold it against you for admitting that and just trying your best to limit the quantity if and when you're able. I remember my father trying once to quit cold turkey, and after not smoking for several days my memory is that he was manic to an unsettling degree.

If you continue smoking, I recommend taking lots of vitamin C - measured in grams, rather than milligrams, per day. Each cigarette smoked depletes the body of significant amounts of it.

Regarding what smoking implies about character, I'm reminded of a comparison of two real men, which I'll share here in a loose way since I may be off on a few details. One of the men embodied many virtuous traits; he was a vegetarian, did not drink, did not smoke, valued chivalry, and was known to be fond of children. The other ate meat and rich food, enjoyed cigars, drank hard liquor, and while he had fast friends his opponents sometimes considered him crude and offensive.

Their names? The first was Adolph Hitler. The second was Winston Churchill.

You can smoke and still be a hero in the world. We sure are in need of heroes more than we are of more non-smokers.

Think of your kids too, I'm learning now that lifestyle activities can change DNA expression in your own body, but can in some cases be passed on to your kids through something called transgenerational epigenetics . Epigenetic markers are being found to be in some ways inherited, and are much more easily changed based on things like diet, health, smoking etc, and so I wonder if even perhaps even thoughts by the looks of neuroepigenetics!!!!

Another good reason to live like a saint until you have kids, then play like a devil afterwards
:whistle: :evil:

Berkeley Lab Confirms Thirdhand Smoke Causes DNA Damage

http://newscenter.lbl.gov/feature-stories/2013/06/20/berkeley-lab-confirms-thirdhand-smoke-causes-dna-damage/

June 20, 2013

Julie Chao (510) 486-6491 JHChao@lbl.gov

A study led by researchers from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has found for the first time that thirdhand smoke—the noxious residue that clings to virtually all surfaces long after the secondhand smoke from a cigarette has cleared out—causes significant genetic damage in human cells.

Furthermore, the study also found that chronic exposure is worse than acute exposure, with the chemical compounds in samples exposed to chronic thirdhand smoke existing in higher concentrations and causing more DNA damage than samples exposed to acute thirdhand smoke, suggesting that the residue becomes more harmful over time.

Continues here: http://newscenter.lbl.gov/feature-stories/2013/06/20/berkeley-lab-confirms-thirdhand-smoke-causes-dna-damage/

View Link - How Cigarette Smoke Kills

I personally feel that my quality of life is better not smoking. And I recognize that smoking is harmful to the body. But it is not the only harmful activity or cancer causing activity we participate in.

Skin cancer is the most prevalent form of all cancers in the U.S. and the number of cases continues to rise. It is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal skin cells.

There are three main types of skin cancer: basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma.

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun is the number-one cause of skin cancer, but UV light from tanning beds is just as harmful. Exposure to sunlight during the winter months puts you at the same risk as exposure during the summertime.

Cumulative sun exposure causes mainly basal cell and squamous cell skin cancer, while episodes of severe sunburns, usually before age 18, can cause melanoma later in life. Other less common causes are repeated X-ray exposure and occupational exposure to certain chemicals.

Most things in life when done in excess are bad for you. The trick is knowing what you want and why; because you have to live with your decisions.