Cigar dangers

Factual Questions
1

So just how dangerous are cigars? I did a quick search and didn’t find anything. I don’t inhale.

What are the legitimate concerns? I am finding myself having more and more of an affinity for stogies.

Thanks!

2

Here’s what the NIH has to say about cigars and cancer.

3

Far be it from me to try to disuade you, but : I smoked five or more a day for years. I read that the incidence of lung cancer by cigar smokers was less than for cigarette smokers, but the number of cases of mouth cancer was higher. As I never heard of anybody with that, I disregared it until…

A fellow cigar smoker sort of disappeared for several months. When I next saw him, he was just out of the hospital where he had his teeth, tongue, gums and palette removed and replaced with plastic. He mumbled, drooled and could only eat baby food.

I decided to give up cigars and smoking all together!

Oh, and even if you don’t inhale, enough nicotine gets into your system through the membranes to still be a big danger.

Enjoy. :slight_smile:

4

Yuck.

I only smoke maybe 1 a week. Maybe One every OTHER week. It is more of atreat for me, not a habit.

I have the unique ability to smoke cigarettes at will and not get addicted. I can smoke on vacation and never think about a cigarette until there is a special event, (usually including me drinking). I may smoke once every 8 weeks or so, and then only for one night. So I guess I am not worried about getting addicted to cigars

5

I smoke cigars occasionally, and did a lot of research into the health effects when I picked up the habit. This is the summation of what I believe are the facts:

  1. The incidence of lung cancer is much lower among cigar smokers than cigarette smokers in North America. In Europe it is much closer. The difference being that Europeans tend to inhale their cigar smoke, while North Americans just puff, hold the smoke in the mouth, and exhale.

  2. The incidence of mouth cancer is about the same for cigar smokers who smoke more than five cigars a week as it is for cigarette smokers, but oral cancers make up a small percentage of cancer deaths for smokers, so it’s not a huge risk increase.

But here’s the biggest factor: The amount you smoke. The average North American cigar smoker smokes fewer than five cigars a week. The average cigarette smoker smokes close to 100 cigarettes a week, and inhales. For the studies that limited themselves to cigar smoking under five a week, the overall risk was considered to be very low (As I recall, one study had a normalized scale with cigarette risk at 100, and non-smokers at 0. Cigar smokers who didn’t inhale and who smoked less than five a week had a risk somewhere around 5.

To me, that is very small risk. Certainly smaller risk than many other things I do, like skiing, flying, not getting enough sleep, being slightly overweight, etc.