Do you smoke?

[Annapurna]

Oh, dear. I'm sorry to hear about your mother too.

Information is so importtant. This image scared me very much,but I'm thankful I saw it:

[dharmagoat]

When I was younger I had the odd cigarette when hanging out with friends... but I doubt I've smoked more than 10 in my whole life.

Me too, but I would have inhaled at least one-hundred times this much in the form of second-hand smoke while socialising in smoky bars.

[Annapurna]

Luckily, smoking is now banned from most public places, despite the taxes States pull in with tobacco. That says a lot.

[adamposey]

Luckily, smoking is now banned from most public places, despite the taxes States pull in with tobacco. That says a lot.

sin-taxes are quite profitable, I would expect to see one on Marijuana in the next 15-20 years.

[Ceisiwr]

I used to smoke but stopped however if i ever get drunk then i tend to have one

[Annapurna]

Luckily, smoking is now banned from most public places, despite the taxes States pull in with tobacco. That says a lot.

sin-taxes are quite profitable, I would expect to see one on Marijuana in the next 15-20 years.

I don't expect that...

[Zack]

Heavy smoker for 25+ yrs, I quit in late 2006.

Thanks to The Dhamma, Alan Carrs book, and Chantix.

[notself]

Since the subject of cancer has come up in relation to smoking as well as other environmental factors, I thought this article from today's New York Times might be an interesting read. You may have to register to read the article (it's free) so I have included some snips.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/08/opini ... ml?_r=1&hp" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Your body is probably home to a chemical called bisphenol A, or BPA. It’s a synthetic estrogen that United States factories now use in everything from plastics to epoxies — to the tune of six pounds per American per year. That’s a lot of estrogen.

More than 92 percent of Americans have BPA in their urine, and scientists have linked it — though not conclusively — to everything from breast cancer to obesity, from attention deficit disorder to genital abnormalities in boys and girls alike.

Now it turns out it’s in our food.

Consumer Reports magazine tested an array of brand-name canned foods for a report in its December issue and found BPA in almost all of them. The magazine says that relatively high levels turned up, for example, in Progresso vegetable soup, Campbell’s condensed chicken noodle soup, and Del Monte Blue Lake cut green beans.

The magazine also says it found BPA in the canned liquid version of Similac Advance infant formula (but not in the powdered version) and in canned Nestlé Juicy Juice (but not in the juice boxes). The BPA in the food probably came from an interior coating used in many cans

Should we be alarmed?

The chemical industry doesn’t think so. Steven Hentges of the American Chemistry Council dismissed the testing, noting that Americans absorb quantities of BPA at levels that government regulators have found to be safe. Mr. Hentges also pointed to a new study indicating that BPA exposure did not cause abnormalities in the reproductive health of rats.

But more than 200 other studies have shown links between low doses of BPA and adverse health effects, according to the Breast Cancer Fund, which is trying to ban the chemical from food and beverage containers.

“The vast majority of independent scientists — those not working for industry — are concerned about early-life low-dose exposures to BPA,” said Janet Gray, a Vassar College professor who is science adviser to the Breast Cancer Fund...

While most of the studies are on animals, the Journal of the American Medical Association reported last year that humans with higher levels of BPA in their blood have “an increased prevalence of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and liver-enzyme abnormalities.” Another published study found that women with higher levels of BPA in their blood had more miscarriages.

Scholars have noted some increasing reports of boys born with malformed genitals, girls who begin puberty at age 6 or 8 or even earlier, breast cancer in women and men alike, and declining sperm counts among men. The Endocrine Society, an association of endocrinologists, warned this year that these kinds of abnormalities may be a consequence of the rise of endocrine-disrupting chemicals, and it specifically called on regulators to re-evaluate BPA.

[Lombardi4]

Wow. So many people have managed to quit! Well done!

[O'seeker]

Heavy smoker for 25+ yrs, I quit in late 2006.

Thanks to The Dhamma, Alan Carrs book, and Chantix.

!!!THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR MENTIONING ALLEN CARR'S BOOK (AND DVD)!!!!


I'm feeling better!

[Bhikkhu Pesala]

Giving up is easy — I did it hundreds of times.

Its the not starting again that's difficult. The secret of success is to contemplate the physical sensations that arise from craving whenever you smell someone else light up, or see someone smoking, or just remember doing it.

If you contemplate the sensations, they always pass away after a short while.

[BlackBird]

Good words Bhante. I'd add that the mental image of having a smoke is a lot more pleasurable than the reality in many cases. Same applies to sex I guess.

[Laurens]

I smoke. Cigarettes and marijuana. I know it's bad for me and might kill me, but I don't care, it gets me through the day.

[Raga Mala]

Did not respond to the poll because I found no category which describes my habits. The most accurate answer would be "I smoke and don't intend to quit," but since the category seemed to be cigarettes, and the verb "smoke" implies a habitual action, this would give the wrong impression.

I smoke occasional pipe and occasional cigar. I would say I have half a dozen cigars a year, and maybe smoke pipe once a month. I don't intend to quit this habit, but I don't smoke often and I never smoke cigarettes, or marijuana.

[Annapurna]

I smoke. Cigarettes and marijuana. I know it's bad for me and might kill me, but I don't care, it gets me through the day.

The Dhamma will get you through the day a lot safer.