Cancer refresher

[Tony Bones]

I generally smoke one cigar per week. Although I don't dwell on it, I am aware that smoking is not great for you. I don't inhale and cringe at the thought of those who do.

Tell me guy's, what's the latest news on the effects of cigar smoking?

I'm not trying to be a joy-kill here, but I think this info. is good stuff to have out there. I've always adhered to the everything in moderation philosophy.

 

[moki]

I am not a doctor, but my mother is, and she's worked in the Oncology field for years, and I've read a number of articles on the subject. If you want a doctor's opinion, seek out your doctor.

The issue with cancer and anything is repeated exposure. Your body is a pretty good filter. If you have a drink a week, your body can shrug that off without a problem. If you have one really fatty meal a week, no problem.

The problem comes in when you repeatedly expose your body to something harmful, without giving it time to recover and clean itself. Some people are more prone to cancer, heart disease, etc. than others. People who are more prone to it are those you need to minimize their exposure to things like not exercising, not eating well, smoking, etc.

Cigarettes are one of the worst things you can do, because you inhale the smoke directly, and people who smoke cigarettes almost never have just one a day or a couple a week. They flood their bodies with carcinogens without giving it time to clean itself.

Cigar smoking is second only to pipe smoking in being the safest way to enjoy tobacco, provided that you do it on a moderate basis. If you smoke 1 cigar a day or less, and maintain an otherwise healthy lifestyle, the impact to you should be minimal. You are far worse off if you eat McDonalds every day than if you smoke a cigar every day.

It's like anything else, do it in moderation, use common sense, and talk to your doctor if you're really concerned. This is some additional information:

http://www.cigargroup.com/faq/health/

 

[lucasbuck]

Well said Andrew :thumbs:

 

[Monte]

And sell your good ISOM's to me! I'll smoke one once a week and let you know how it goes

 

[SFG75]

And sell your good ISOM's to me! I'll smoke one once a week and let you know how it goes

I'm sure it's a difficult task Monte, but someone's gotta do it-but what the heck, I'm with ya! Bring 'em on!

 

[oak]

Quick Opinion: 1/week ain't bad... You've increased your risk, but it seems unlikely you've upped your risk percentage to a number that would bother you much. There is little to no data for people in your range of usage, so find a decent doctor and read up on the data yourself simultaneously.

Long-winded Opinion: Call me disrespectful to the medical community, but I have talked with almost no doctors (and I've looked - my family is rife with cancer... ) that are really educated in this field. Most are absolutists and just chant, "Don't smoke!" over and over... and refuse to discuss risks of occassional use.

If you want to educate yourself a bit, a good start is the NIH Web site and its tobacco/cancer related subsidiary - cancer.gov. There are some good links off of the CW homepage as well. However, if you want to actually read the real data yourself and get serious - then go to the National Library of Medicine's site (or drive your ass cross-country to their physical location near DC - and I'll buy you a beer and cigar before we browse the stacks), and start checking out journals - and getting on mailing lists with the doctors in the field.

If your research is like mine (which was extensive, but in no way complete), you will immediately notice one thing: As far as I know, there have been zero reputable or large-scale studies on occassional cigar smokers. There have, however, been lots that have users that smoke 1/day. According to most studies (information does vary) - smoking one cigar per day at least doubles the risk for oral cancers and esophageal cancer, and increases risk of cancer of the larnyx to about six times the level of a nonsmoker.

Going from 1/day to 3-4 a day is a massive jump. Whether the line where you are taking too much risk stops at 1/day or 1/week - is debatable and a matter of personal choice. After all my research, I scaled back from 1/day to a max of 2-3 a week on heavy weeks - and 1/week most of the time. Agree with the philosophical bent of Moki's post, but might disagree with the implication that 1/day does not substantially increase your health risks... but it depends on your definition of "substantial". (Do be careful with the data, almost every report you read is biased heavily one way or the other - and pay attention to the funder of the research as you read.)

What's your risk at 1/week or 2-3 a week? No idea. No one knows as far as I've researched (and I've looked - as I fall into the same category). The studies all tend to start at 1/day or higher - and most studies revolve around users that are 3-4 per day (people who smoke at this level have much much higher risk levels). Also, many studies fail to remove alcohol from the equation (yup - if you smoke and drink - you've found yourself a sort of "cancer synergy"!!) All we know is that a 1/week habit is less risky than one that is 1/day, but not by how much (remember, 6 times the risk of a nonsmoker isn't necessarily that high... still within "roll the dice" levels for many).

My advice: Find a doctor that knows what they're talking about more than me or any cigar group (I'd say we're a wee bit biased and perhaps lacking in credentials ). If you can't find a doctor that doesn't suck - then hit the books (preferably the source journals).

Last point: Talk to Moki's mom, she's got to be filled with patience for people trying to justify/rationalize doing things that are bad and/or crazy for themselves... and we should all email her and tell her how much Moki smokes so he gets grounded...

:sign:

Cheers,

- Oak

 

[oak]

Oh - one more thing for you. The single best research summary I could find is still the 1998 NCI Monograph called: Cigars: Health Effects and Trends (you can order it from the Cancer Information Service at 1–800–4–CANCER). Decent sample size and a good all-around summary of research up until '98. Sample size is really a problem with a lot of the most recent research. The trends in many newer studies seem clear, right up until you see the sample size and realize that it just doesn't compensate for the normal deviations found among real-life people...

Only thing worse than no research is bad research...

Trod through a few of these documents and you'll start smoking more... life is too short not to shorten it a bit more with vices instead of reading dry crap...

- Oak

 

[MiamiCubano]

Chalk it up to the fact that my physician (an internal medicine physician) is a fellow Cubano - but he has stated that my smoking 2 sticks per week (occassionally reaching 3 per week) is no problem. Music to my ears.

 

[Lumberg]

(Do be careful with the data, almost every report you read is biased heavily one way or the other - and pay attention to the funder of the research as you read.)

This man knows what he's talking about.

My main rationalization for smoking as much as I care to (which can be anywhere from 1 a week to 4 a day) is that I don't drink. Since as Oak said none of the studies have controlled for simultaneous alcohol use, I rest easy.

Also keep in mind that the higher proof the alcohol, the higher the risk of oral cancer. Thus scotch is going to be much worse for you than Miller Lite.