I was wondering if smoking two or three cigs a day is “bad” for someone.
I have never been addicted to cigarettes, I just like to have one every now and then. I buy a pack and it lasts me two weeks.
I don`t always smoke when I drink either. I just get them when I feel like it.
Is this harmful to me?
Having done this for fifteen years, will this catch up to me in the long run?
I can go months without one and then I`ll just get the urge, but like I said only about two or three a day at the most. Usually one in the morning and one after lunch.
Notwithstanding any preference you may have for smoking, be it flavor, perceived relaxation or whatever (meaning I am not making that level of a judgement), why would you deliberately introduce these things into your body and assume nothing will happen to you, not even two or three times a day?
I have the same weird habits. My lovin’ grand pap smoked since he was 14. He died at 80 of something else.
That dont’ answer your question tho does it? sowwy
I think we ought to live our lives in moderation. Too much fat, too much beer (sigh) is not good for us.
I dont’ think it’ll hurt you in the long run, IN moderation. Heck, air pollution is that bad… What is prob more important, is the things you are genetically disposed to … i.e. heart disease, etc.
I also have been a very light smoker for about fifteen years or so. Never had the experience of feeling like I needed to smoke. If I’m writing or coding, I tend to like a bit of nicotine. At times I’ll go weeks without smoking anything at all.
Healthwise, obviously it would better not to smoke at all, but I doubt that folks like you and I have a significantly higher risk of developing emphysema or cancer than your average urban dweller.
My suggestion would be, if you ever, even for a second, feel “twitchy” and “in need of a ciggy”, back the hell up, and don’t smoke at all for an extended period. Addiction is ugly.
I’m more of a periodic smoker. There have been times in my life where I spent a month or two smoking between 0 & 5 cigarettes a day. More typical nowadays is I smoke when I go out. I might have 4 smokes over the course of a night.
I never buy packs because I end up throwing them away. Instead, I usually bum 'em off a friend, making sure to buy them a pack or two every 3-4 times we go out so I’m not a constant scammer.
I’ve never felt the “need” for a cigarette. I smoke because I enjoy it, especially in a party atmosphere. When I was younger I smoked more consistently, but always ended up stopping because I lost interest in them.
I asked about this on the SDMB about 3-4 years ago, and at that time, we had a doctor on the board whose primary field of research was nicotine addiction. He told me that about 5% of the population have some sort of natural resistance to nicotine, and cannot become addicted to it. The other 95% of people are highly at risk for nicotine addiction if they smoke. He said from what I told him (obviously mostly anecdotal evidence) it sounded as if I might be one of the 5%.
I just killed the last cig in the pack this morning and I wont go out to get more till who knows when.
I cant stand smoking in the car so I never do that, also closed rooms are a no no, so is home. Every smoker I know says Im strange and that they wish they could do this too. I guess being only 5% of something would make you strange.
The phenomenon is called “social smoking.” I, myself, am a periodic social smoker. I did a google search on “social smokers” and “health effects,” and came up with this. It claims that women who smoke 1-14 cigs a day have three times the rrisk of heart disease as women who don’t smoke at all. Not sure what that means for folks who only smoke 2-3 a day, or 8-10 in a night, once or twice a month. But the concensus seems to be that there is no safe level of smoking. Oh yeah, Cecil sort of covered this.
It’s like anything, I get the urge for a double-layer death-by-chocolate-cake every now and then… or a pile of greasy onion rings… or a few really stiff drinks… normally you don’t give a crap about the consequences at the time. It’s all about moderation - if you gave up every single thing that was enjoyable in life, it would be pretty damn boring.
I guess I’m also in that 5%. I smoke occasionally, and mostly when I drink or if someone just offers me a square. I’ve never felt the need to have a smoke and as improbable as it sounds I just kinda like the experience.
I’ve never had any adverse effects from smoking and I"m a pretty active guy. I’d say that we’re ok
I read a blurb about the study Alan Smithee linked to, and it’s my understanding that light smoking is nearly as harmful as pack-a-day smoking. E.g. you’d be better off smoking a pack all in one day than smoking 3 a day for a week, because your lungs don’t really recover in the short periods between smokes. That summary was in like, Glamour Magazine, or something though, so I wouldn’t put a lot of stock in the interpretation.
