Is cigarette smoking bad for your heatlh?

steveinaz

Snow boarding, bungee jumping, skydiving, and roller skating raise health care costs too...should we tax those into oblivion as well?

We all pay for each others habits, it's a fact of life.

Demonize, and then tax to death...insurance companies love our patterns, it gives them justification and backing to charge what they want.

tonyb

cristo wrote: »

Smoking is not bad for me since I don't smoke.
Well, not quite...
If it's close enough, there's second hand smoke which has very significant effects.
It drives up health care costs, so it interferes with my acquisition of health care.
It wastes farm land that could be producing healthy foods.

On the plus side...

It provides some tax revenue that partially offsets the huge health care costs
associated with smoking.
It provides people who grow tobacco or work for the tobacco industry with jobs.
It also sends me more business, as I'm a primary care physician (I'd rather do
without that extra business, however - it's very frustrating to watch people decline
over the years before their time because of their smoking history).

Sorry dude, but I have to call out B.S. when I see it.

As for tax revenue and lower costs to healthcare because of smokers quiting, maybe...at least thats the line sold to many to pass laws banning it. It would be safe to say at least 40-50% of people today don't smoke compared to 10 or 20 years ago. Has healthcare costs gone down ? Istead of demonizing everything,maybe at some point someone will actually start adressing the real reasons healthcare costs so much.
Also I have to laugh at the "wastes farm land" comment. Food would be better then ? Before or after it gets fertilized,sprayed with chemicals ? Seems to me those chemicals would reach far more people than smokers.

You may be a primary care doc and thats all well and good, kudo's to you and your profession. I just can't wrap my brain around people who want to tell others how to live their life. If a person is on their death bed from smoking, you don't think they know why ? It's their life to live, or lose, by anyway they see fit. No sane person wants to die, but we all do,regardless if you drink,smoke, or are a healthnut and did everything right your whole life.

I can't imagine anyone not agreeing that smoking is bad for you. We all get it. But at the same time, there are those who can't figure out why some still do it. I don't have an answer for that other than it's basic human behavior to have bad habits, be it in drink,smoke,food,drugs,or lifestyle. Laws won't stop that. Just like when they tried to ban booze, didn't stop people from drinking. Instead they tax the crap out of it to make money on bad habits. Gambling too, now everyone and their brother wants a casino to prop up government revenues off of bad habits. You would think they would encourage smoking, get those bucks,and when they die early,you save all that social security money you'd pay out. Control the population too. Yeah, I jest....but sooner or later some will look at it like that.

tonyb

steveinaz wrote: »

Demonize, and then tax to death...insurance companies love our patterns, it gives them justification and backing to charge what they want.

Exactly Steve, not to mention once you demonize something, it creates boat loads of lobbying money funneled into washington. Are the pieces of the puzzle starting to come together ?

bobman1235

Re : the health care costs argument.... if smokers die earlier, doesn't that save us a lot of health care costs from them getting into their 80's and 90's?

carpenter

Serendipity wrote: »

I had lunch with a friend from high school who I haven't seen since last year; he is a smoker and continues to smoke regularly everyday. I told him that cigarette smoking is very bad for your health, as I was trying to look out for him, but he didn't want to hear any of it and said that the cheeseburger I was eating at the time is just as bad for your health.

How do I convince him to quit smoking before it is too late?

To what extent is cigarette smoking bad for your heatlh?

I always thought it was extremely harmful to your lungs, but never did any research. Just believed what I was told. As I like to question everything, I am looking for concrete data showing that cigarettes are indeed bad for your health.

You can't convince your friend that smoking is bad for his health because it sounds like he isn't ready for hearing that, yet.
Unfortunately, I was there (smoking) for the better part of my adult life: when I wasn't ready to quit, I sounded exactly like him.
When I've finally gathered enough courage to quit, well, I did just that.
It doesn't sound like your friend is an imbecile, which means he knows all about the dangers of smoking and he chooses to believe the contradicting theories.
Eventually, hopefully soon, he'll be ready and decide to attempt kicking the habit, and that would be the time he'll truly need you.
You sound like a decent person and a good friend, and I'm sure you'll rise to the challenge.

gdb

Smoking can and does catch up to you/me/us. A 76 year old friend just was diagnosed with lung cancer, the bit@h of it is....... he hasn't smoked in over thirty years!:eek: Got Pulmonologist??:frown:

WilliamM2

gdb wrote: »

Smoking can and does catch up to you/me/us. A 76 year old friend just was diagnosed with lung cancer, the bit@h of it is....... he hasn't smoked in over thirty years!:eek: Got Pulmonologist??:frown:

Maybe it wasn't smoking. I had an Uncle diagnosed with lung cancer at the age of 62. Never smoked a day in his life, or had any other habit/occupation known to cause lung cancer. Non smokers do get lung cancer you know.

Not that I think smoking is good for you, quit 15 months ago, but some claim there has been a huge increase in lung cancer cases, ever since they started testing atomic bombs in the 50's. Oddly enough, about the same time the anti-smoking crusade began...

bobman1235

Imagine how many other things in our society / environment changed starting around the 1950's. Hilarious that they'd link it to the atomic bomb testing.

BlueFox

bobman1235 wrote: »

Re : the health care costs argument.... if smokers die earlier, doesn't that save us a lot of health care costs from them getting into their 80's and 90's?

Just guessing here, but somebody slowly dieing of smoking illnesses probably cost more than somebody healthy who dies of old age. Health care tries to prolong life so a sick smoker might live longer, and cost more, than if there were no health care. Then again, maybe they do save society money by dieing prematurely.

tommyboy

bobman1235 wrote: »

Re : the health care costs argument.... if smokers die earlier, doesn't that save us a lot of health care costs from them getting into their 80's and 90's?

smokers are people too you know. I don't smoke, it just seemed your comment was a bit much.

What is your point anyways? If they are already smoking, they might as well keep it up so they die quicker and save us from health care costs?

steveinaz

BlueFox wrote: »

Just guessing here, but somebody slowly dieing of smoking illnesses probably cost more than somebody healthy who dies of old age. Health care tries to prolong life so a sick smoker might live longer, and cost more, than if there were no health care. Then again, maybe they do save society money by dieing prematurely.

I'm a smoker, and I can count on 6 fingers how many times I've been to the doctor in the last 29 years. 2 of those 6 times were for injuries.

bobman1235

BlueFox wrote:

Just guessing here, but somebody slowly dieing of smoking illnesses probably cost more than somebody healthy who dies of old age. Health care tries to prolong life so a sick smoker might live longer, and cost more, than if there were no health care. Then again, maybe they do save society money by dieing prematurely.

I dunno man, most people who live past 80 or so (not all, but many) tend to just take up LOADS of health care costs just for basic things, let alone if they get actually sick. Nearly everyone here has likely had a parent or grandparent or something live to a ripe old age, and they go to the doctor CONSTANTLY.

tommyboy wrote: »

smokers are people too you know. I don't smoke, it just seemed your comment was a bit much.

What is your point anyways? If they are already smoking, they might as well keep it up so they die quicker and save us from health care costs?

That wasn't my point at all. My point was that the argument that "smokers cost more in healthcare costs" may not actually be true, and that's it. I wasn't suggesting we ACT on that information in some bizarre way, and I have no idea how you jumped to that conclusion.



And don't be so effing sensitive. We're all gonna die. Every one of us. 80 years from now not a single person on this board will still be alive. So don't be so uptight about kicking the bucket.

Joe08867

Really guys, are we arguing over if smoking is bad for you?

I smoke, I know it is bad but I have a habit and I am to weak to stop at this point.

Is it bad for my health? Yes
Is it bad for those around me? Yes

gdb

WilliamM2 wrote: »

Maybe it wasn't smoking. I had an Uncle diagnosed with lung cancer at the age of 62. Never smoked a day in his life, or had any other habit/occupation known to cause lung cancer. Non smokers do get lung cancer you know.

Not that I think smoking is good for you, quit 15 months ago, but some claim there has been a huge increase in lung cancer cases, ever since they started testing atomic bombs in the 50's. Oddly enough, about the same time the anti-smoking crusade began...

Good point ! I can remember being a small kid on a train platform on Long Island around 1956-57 when a truck mounted fogger machine went by and visibility went to zero for the people for at least 1.5 minutes. Being a dumbass kid, I naturally took off at a brisk run through the DDT fog and gave my dear Mother a heart attack. Luckily, I didn't pitch headlong onto the tracks of my Father's commuter, train due at any moment!:biggrin:Better living through chemistry is what they told us!:mad:

madmax

If you live too long you have to put up with too much crap.

steveinaz

Smoking provides a tough, protective layer on your lungs.

BlueFox

gdb wrote: »

Good point ! I can remember being a small kid on a train platform on Long Island around 1956-57 when a truck mounted fogger machine went by and visibility went to zero for the people for at least 1.5 minutes. Being a dumbass kid, I naturally took off at a brisk run through the DDT fog and gave my dear Mother a heart attack. Luckily, I didn't pitch headlong onto the tracks of my Father's commuter, train due at any moment!:biggrin:Better living through chemistry is what they told us!:mad:

As a kid, we used to follow the mosquito fog spraying truck on our bicycles. :eek:

Mike Reeter

Joe08867 wrote: »

Really guys, are we arguing over if smoking is bad for you?

I smoke, I know it is bad but I have a habit and I am to weak to stop at this point.

Is it bad for my health? Yes
Is it bad for those around me? Yes

I was right there with you for most of my life,give Chantix a try if one day you think you have had enough...amazing drug,help me quite for the last time.

JustinHEMI

Mike Reeter wrote: »

I was right there with you for most of my life,give Chantix a try if one day you think you have had enough...amazing drug,help me quite for the last time.

I got chantix when it first came out and have been smoke free ever since! Going on 5 years now. I do miss the vivid dreams.

Tour2ma

tonyb wrote: »

Exactly Steve, not to mention once you demonize something, it creates boat loads of lobbying money funneled into washington. Are the pieces of the puzzle starting to come together ?

So if we say nice things about tobacco, oil, HFC, etc..., then they will quit lobbying? :biggrin: Talk about a shock to the economy...

I wasted better part of 30 years and untold thousands (prolly tens of...) of dollars smoking. Been smoke-free (excepting a couple road trips) for three+ now...

I sleep better (and quieter per the wife)...
I am completely off my allergy meds - in my case the biggest surprise and benefit of quitting by a mile...
Food tastes better...
And I most certainly smell better (based on walking near smokers/ smoking areas)...

Mike Reeter

JustinHEMI wrote: »

I got chantix when it first came out and have been smoke free ever since! Going on 5 years now. I do miss the vivid dreams.

The side effects (dreams) were a little bizzare at times,but the feeling of never smoking before was,is,outstanding.Like the drug had erasted all your smoking/addiction from your mind.

mrbigbluelight

bobman1235 wrote: »

Imagine how many other things in our society / environment changed starting around the 1950's. Hilarious that they'd link it to the atomic bomb testing.

Mr. B, there may be more to that nuclear contamination/cancer link than is apparent at first glance.
(started a thread with a simple video that shows the massive number of nuclear explosions since 1945; did that so this thread wouldn't get slopped up).

gimpod

bobman1235 wrote: »

Imagine how many other things in our society / environment changed starting around the 1950's. Hilarious that they'd link it to the atomic bomb testing.

mrbigbluelight wrote: »

Mr. B, there may be more to that nuclear contamination/cancer link than is apparent at first glance.
(started a thread with a simple video that shows the massive number of nuclear explosions since 1945; did that so this thread wouldn't get slopped up).

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=120795
All that fallout has to go somewhere. And that's just the ones we know about VERY scary when you think about it.

sucks2beme

Everything is bad for you. Life eventually kills you.
Any questions?

bobman1235

I wasn't denying that those things happened, just that there's absolutely no way to correlate those two things. None. The world has changed DRASTICALLY in the past 60 years, especially wiht regards to technology and pollution, and there's no science to saying "well, these things happened, and THIS thing happened in the same timeframe, so they must be not only related but have a causal relationship."

BlueFox

gimpod wrote: »

All that fallout has to go somewhere. And that's just the ones we know about VERY scary when you think about it.

This is where the real X-Men come from.

Joe08867

JustinHEMI wrote: »

I got chantix when it first came out and have been smoke free ever since! Going on 5 years now. I do miss the vivid dreams.

I don't miss the vivid dreams I had on wellbutrin. And they say they don't hold a candle to chantix. I have bad enough dreams without any help.

WilliamM2

Joe08867 wrote: »

I don't miss the vivid dreams I had on wellbutrin. And they say they don't hold a candle to chantix. I have bad enough dreams without any help.

At first I used Wellbutrin. No vivid dreams, as it gave me insomnia so bad that I didn't sleep more than an hour or two for weeks. The doctor kept telling me this would wear off. It didn't. I quit taking it after 4 weeks, and still managed to quit smoking.

nadams

On to 3 pages and 61 replies... and no sign of Serendipity.

Huh...

billbillw

nadams wrote: »

On to 3 pages and 61 replies... and no sign of Serendipity.

Huh...

I think he is embarrassed for asking another of many juvenile questions.

He shouldn't feel too bad though. This thread has made me loose respect for many due to the plethora of low brow input.