<p>a glass of wine a day is proven to reduce the risk of heart attacks.</p>
<p>rum & whiskey are allegedly beneificial in small quantities as well</p>
<p>drinking beer is supposed to kill brain cells, smoking pot does the same too, and mushrooms are the absolute worst (in terms of killing brain cells)</p>
<p>Carolyn,
Very powerful & heartfelt story. Hopefully it will cause at least one of these casual smokers to give pause before lighting their next one up.</p>
<p>isn't acid worse than mushrooms?</p>
<p>"""sex(can be) bad for you"</p>
<p>umm.... no""</p>
<p>Umm.... yes. It can be. Ever heard of STD's?</p>
<p>Sempitern55, so sex is never bad for you? What about unprotected sex with an HIV postitive person, is that good for you? How about stds, teen pregnency, not mention the many emotional problems that can come with sex? Either way, this argument isn't about the dangers of sex. We all know they exist, just as we all know the dangers of smoking and drinking and all other forms of drug use. The point is that people choose to do these harmful things knowing that there might be a price to pay down the road. The way I see it, let them kill themselves if that's what they want to do.</p>
<p>Sure unprotected sex is a risk. However, with the exception of AIDs, STDs are rarely life-threatening and can be cured quickly and easily. Not so with almost all of the diseases associated with smoking. </p>
<p>In any case, using a different risky behavior as an example to justify another one is a false argument: it does not negate the risks of the behavior in question.</p>
<p>Hopefully it will cause at least one of these casual smokers to give pause before lighting their next one up.>></p>
<p>Nah, Audiophile, I know there's no chance of that. I would bet that most of the smokers here read the first line or two of my post, then told themselves that it didn't apply to them, and went back to trying to find justifications for why smoking isn't bad.</p>
<p>My experience is that most smokers have a serious case of denial. I can not tell you how many smokers over the course of my life have told me "I can quit any time" or "I only smoke once in a while." Yet, for some reason, they never seem to "quit at any time" and the "once in a while" smokers usually become "once a day" and then "once an hour" smokers.</p>
<p>It's difficult to see the truth when you're looking through the smoke of an addictive substance.</p>
<p>Btw, I've heard that drinking in moderation isn't necessarily bad for you health. In fact, it is kinda beneficial (reduces risk of heart disease?)???? Obviously, if you are a drunk it will hurt you. But in moderation is it otherwise okay? Educate me.>></p>
<p>A-bomb, first, if you're under the age of 40, you probably don't have to worry much about drinking to reduce your risk of heart disease. :)</p>
<p>Second, yes, drinking in moderation is probably not going to kill you in the same way that smoking in moderation will. However, "moderation" can be difficult to define and assess. Each person's body processes alcohol at different rates, and what is "moderate" for one person may not be for another, depending on weight, age, previous experience with alcohol use, etc.. There is also a genetic risk for some people of becoming addicted to alcohol. In that case, there probably is no "moderate" use. </p>
<p>However, I have discussed this with my doctor, and her advice was that one to two drinks a week is "moderation." Several drinks every night is not. Neither is binge drinking to the point of drunkeness, even if it is "only" once a week. Bottomline: a glass of wine with dinner now and then is fine for most people, so long as it does not become habitual or excessive.</p>
<p>"I don't consider "smoking recreationally" to be a smoker. Would you mark "yes" on your housing forms to "Do you smoke?". I sure wouldn't think so. T</p>
<p>Gosh, I sure hope that an occasional smoker would mark that they smoke.</p>
<p>As a nonsmoker, I can smell cigarettes on people's clothing, hair, breath, etc. The smoke from even on cigarette a day lingers.</p>
<p>In addition, people who are allergic to cigarette smoke can't be around people who have been smoking because the particles clinging to the smoker cause allergic reactions. The same is true for asthmatics.</p>
<p>As for smokers who might claim that it's impossible to avoid smokers. That's actually not true, particularly if one lives in the US.</p>
<p>My family knows very few smokers. We can go out, have people over, etc. and never encounter smokers except when walking past buildings where the smokers are clustered outside.</p>
<p>At S's high school, very few students smoke either. Even long after school hours, I don't see students hanging around smoking.</p>
<p>In general, in this country, the higher people's educational level, the lower is the possibility that they will smoke. </p>
<p>Smokers now tend to be people who have not gone to college or are not college bound and/or people who have major mental health problems who use cigarettes to calm down. This is why so many street people (many of whom are homeless because of addictions or other mental health problems) smoke.</p>
<p>For posters who come from other countries like France in which smoking is popular and even may be a sign of independence, affluence or sophistication, be aware that what you see in your country is very different than the way things are in the US.</p>
<p>Good point, Northstarmom. I have also noticed that there are fewer smokers in California than there are in other parts of the country. The Northeast, in particular, seems to have more smokers. Here in California, there have even been moves afoot to ban smoking on beaches and in public parks. All restaurants and bars in the city where I live (San Diego) are completely smoke free.</p>
<p>"My experience is that most smokers have a serious case of denial. I can not tell you how many smokers over the course of my life have told me "I can quit any time" or "I only smoke once in a while"</p>
<p>Carolyn,
My experience is the opposite. I am a dentist and always address the smoking issue. Maybe they're just telling me what I want to hear, but all of my smoker patients tell me they want to quit and list the methods they've tried. Another typical response is: "I quit for X years and recently got divorced (lost a parent, job, etc) and the stress to drove me back to it". Just today we had a 25 yo patient who announced that she hasn't had a cig for a month and we made a big deal over it.</p>
<p>When we travel out of California, we see smokers...blech</p>
<p>In Ireland, they banned smoking indoors in a lot of places, finally, its starting in England</p>
<p>In SF- my home town- no more smoking in parks near children's playgrounds.</p>
<p>Smokers, by the way, are litterbugs, big time</p>
<p>My H would have one cig a week when I met him, it was one too much, now when he goes out, I can tell if he has been near a smoker...</p>
<p>My D had a friend whose mother smoked and the poor child reeked and so did her clothes. We had to toss the handmedowns as they were unwearable, could not get cig smoke out</p>
<p>Non smokers don;t like kissing smokers, its like licking an ashtray</p>
<p>Smokers will shower, where clean clothes, dress well, do their hair, etc, but still smell like an ashtray</p>
<p>Northstarmom - so, since I have smoked, let's see, maybe 8 cigarettes since I turned 18 in November, I should have marked "Yes"? Because that to me is what "occasional" smoker means. I personally don't think that it's occasional if you are going through a pack in any frequency. Once a month is my max for "occasional". What do the rest of you define occasional as (since I think there's obvious discrepancies).</p>
<p>"Here in California, there have even been moves afoot to ban smoking on beaches and in public parks."</p>
<p>I, for one, support a smoking ban in our states' recreational grounds. It's disgusting to sift through the sand on the beach and in the sandbox and find a cigarette butt - from who knows how long ago - in the palm of your hand.</p>
<p>nicotine is more addictive than heroin. Shocking isn't it?</p>
<p>But it takes a lot longer to kill you. Most smokers don't end up hookers or petty criminals.</p>
<p>prettyfish, you have started smokng, statsically, once you start, you most likely will smoke more and more...and out of courisity from a non smoker, what is the once a month attraction?</p>
<p>For me, lame as it sounds, it's mostly a social thing, in that when my friends and I decide to have a "classy" night, we smoke one or two. Cigarettes, not packs. I'm actually quite allergic to the smoke, I'm an avid athlete, and I don't inhale anyway - I just really like blowing the smoke back out and pretending I'm a dragon. Lame, but true.</p>
<p>Difference (so as to not sound hypocritical - I am avidly anti-smoking if you are smoking regularly and I highly doubt I would mind if tobacco was made illegal)? I KNOW it's lame. I don't do it as a way to relax. I don't do it to be cool. I really don't enjoy it at ALL as I'm doing it. I basically do it as an inside joke. Lame, but, again, true.</p>
<p>You don't do it to be cool, but you do do it to look classy? Well, at least you admit it is kind of lame. Why not just get those fake ones you blow into that light up red and has dust come out? Like from a joke shop? Same look, less damage ;)</p>
<p>I don't feel like being banned for discussing drug use, so all I'll say on the matter is some people (i'llbeback, ceruleanne) need to do a lot more reading before they comment on these things. I would venture to say I know what I'm talking about when I say this.</p>
<p>Anyhow, smoking doesn't really bother me. Basically, I feel that you've got to do what you've got to do, but people should at least know the facts so that they may decide for themselves that the rewards outweight the risks, or vice versa. That said, I don't think anything should be illegal. No one should be able to tell another what to do with their money and their health. A great site about all sorts of things in this vein is Erowid (search Google for it).</p>
<p>Anyways, I doubt you're going to find "pro-smoking" colleges, and I assume that most colleges have the same general policy regarding smoking. They can't stop you from doing it, but they're sure not going to encourage it. Deciding where to go to college based on smoking rules would be a pretty bad choice anyways.</p>