<p>No one wants to be addicted to anything, but what is the physical harm of being addicted to the nicotine gum or patch? What does nicotine do to your body that’s bad, in and of itself? </p>
<p>I’ve never smoked. My Dad, a heavy smoker, died after his second heart attack at age 53. I was 11 yrs. old. I remember being physically sick riding in the car with him while he was smoking. I hated it. </p>
<p>A lot of my friends tried it out but I was never tempted. My brother and sister(both older than me) smoked for years but quit. DH took up smoking during college back in the 70’s. We started dating his senior yr. and soon talked about marriage. I told him I absolutely would not marry him unless he stopped smoking. He did :)</p>
<p>My MIL is 83 and a lifelong smoker. I don’t know if she has ever tried to quit. Her house, clothes, car, etc. reeks of smoke. We hate having to sit in her house when we visit. We all come out with stinky clothes and hair after a visit to grandma’s house. UGH. </p>
<p>Everyone said the cravings would be gone after 2 weeks, but they weren’t, nor after 2 months. About 6 months was when I quit being depressed, but just kept telling myself it was a drug withdrawal, and the only way to get through it was to get through it - the old “when you’re going through hell, keep going” plan. </p>
<p>One thing I had to do was stay out of bars, as that was a trigger, and also when I had more than one drink my will power got weak. Speaking of which…there must be some principle of conservation of will power. In the first year of not smoking, I wasted tons of money (much more than I saved from not smoking) on buying things I didn’t need. Once the cravings really faded my spending got back in control, but it was a strange phase. Could have been worse, could have been some other addiction.</p>
<p>I’ve seen the addiction/will power thing play our with others. Watch someone quit drinking or give up drugs, and see if they don’t take up gambling or smoking.</p>
<p>VeryHappy:</p>
<p>Nicotine is a poison that was sold as an insecticide for plants for many years. Caused a lot of problems because it is so rapidly absorbed through the skin. It was sold commercially in the US under the brand name Black Leaf 40, mostly for aphid control.</p>
<p><a href=“Nicotine poisoning - Wikipedia”>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicotine_poisoning</a></p>
<p>It’s fatal to humans in concentrated doses and harmful in small doses (constricts blood vessels, raises blood pressure, etc.), although certainly not as harmful as inhaling smoke and the resulting carbon monoxide poisoning.</p>
<p>The pharma marketers who present it as completely harmless are being “disingenuous”.</p>
<p>interesteddad, re: Obama and nicotine gum. I smoked for about 35 years, as much as a pack a day sometimes, but in the last 20 years before I quit two or three packs a week. I quit cold turkey just over four years ago. (I had “quit” numerous times before that, but the quitting never lasted more than a couple of months.) I haven’t touched a tobacco product since.</p>
<p>Anyway, at the time I quit, the health insurance I had then gave me a health coach, who of course was thrilled to help me quit smoking. He sent me what was supposed to me a one-month supply of nicotine gum. I used maybe five pieces in the course of my quitting – despite what you say, nicotine addiction was never my problem – and so was left with a huge supply of nicotine gum. Over time, I discovered that it was really useful as an occasional pick-me-up, for those drowsy times when coffee is too slow and 5-Hour Energy way too much. I use it very sparingly – no more than a couple of pieces a month, if that – and I still have over half of my original stash. But I ain’t throwing it out! It’s a very nice little drug.</p>
<p>I am not saying that Obama and I have that in common, necessarily. But I can assure you from personal experience that having quit smoking years ago and sometimes using nicotine gum are not mutually exclusive.</p>
<p>And, not every teenager who smokes a cigarette becomes a nicotine junkie. It’s playing Russian Routette. </p>
<p>Nicotine is one of the most highly addictive drugs known to man. Any former smoker who considers the occasional use of nicotine should weigh the perceived benefits against the risk (becoming a smoker again). Personally, I know that I never want to be caught in that trap again. If I were to return to smoking, I’m sure that I would smoke until the day I die. So, to me, it is a very simple proposition. A personal commitment to never put nicotine in my body. Nicotine is the reason I was a smoker. As long as I keep it out of my body, I am at zero risk.</p>
<p>A while ago, long after I quit smoking, when I was in a personal crisis, the NYC Dept. of Health had just started offering free nicotine patches for people who wanted to quit smoking. (This offer is still in effect.) I used these patches for a week or so, thinking that it a stimulant would help me. I cut the patches into pieces to limit my consumption, but they gave me palpitations. I was never tempted to smoke.</p>
<p>I did try one cigarette about a year after quitting, and I hated, hated, hated the taste and heat of it. Never tempted again after that, either. I guess it just depends.</p>
<p>
<br>
It’s really not a California thing. Our PA colleges are also smoke free. NYC banned smoking 10 years ago. I can’t understand why all states don’t ban smoking, but it is so much better then even 10 years ago.
<a href=“Lists & Maps - American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation | no-smoke.org”>http://www.no-smoke.org/goingsmokefree.php?id=519</a> </p>
<p>My father started smoking when he was in the army in his early twenties. Can you believe that cigarettes were provided to our soldiers?? He didn’t stop until he had a heart attack but the effects of 40+ years of smoking left him with emphysema, life long heart problems and eye problems associated with smoking. He always said his one regret in life was smoking. I tried two cigarettes out of curiosity as a teenager but found them icky. </p>
<p>“There must be some principle of conservation of will power.” There is.</p>
<p><a href=“The science of willpower - Scope”>http://scopeblog.stanford.edu/2011/12/29/a-conversation-about-the-science-of-willpower/</a></p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Can you believe that cigarettes were provided to our soldiers</p>
<p>Makes sense. It’s a stimulant.
You do remember Iran-Contra?
The govt is not averse to becoming involved in drug distribution.</p>
<p>You can also improve your will power & concentration.
Build that " muscle".</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-science-willpower/201004/meditate-your-way-more-willpower”>http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-science-willpower/201004/meditate-your-way-more-willpower</a></p>
<p>And, yanno, Obama has kinda a high stress job. </p>
<p>I despise smoking. In high school I took a few puffs when we were out drinking, but I never really figured out how to do it (fortunately). I would never date or live with a smoker and hate being around smoke. I would not hire a smoker, either.
I believe Obama still smokes and it is pretty much a deal-breaker for me. I just can’t respect someone who smokes.</p>
<p>As a young lawyer I worked for one of the major tobacco companies and saw their internal documents. I’m surprised as many people have effectively quit as they have. </p>
<p>I’ve learned life is too short to judge other people by their weaknesses.
We all have our addictions.</p>
<p>I only judge people’s addictions when they directly hurt other people.
My Mountain Dew addiction only hurts myself (and maybe, indirectly, some others’ pocket books but not noticeably).
With that said, I give those a pass who are trying to quit and don’t appear to be harming anyone else but themselves (those who are now on gum, patches, etc or at least have the decency to not smoke around others). </p>
<p>I have never smoked, but my parents smoked. Father quit when I was a child, mother quit when she was diagnosed with lung cancer. She survived, but developed COPD. Many years ago, I worked as a restaurant manager, when you could still smoke in restaurants. When things were slow, a couple of us would help at the door before the seater arrived. We would guess “smoking or non” as the patrons walked up to the door. We were almost always right. It’s amazing what a toll it takes on someone’s looks. If more young people knew that, they might not pick up the habit. Vanity for some is a bigger motivator than health. </p>
<p>But if you don’t know how old someone is, how can you tell if they are a smoker or not?
How old would you say the woman in my avatar is?
;)</p>
<p>Smokers hurt everyone in the workplace. Besides the health cost issues, there are tremendous loss of productivity issues. Smoking is the single worst thing you can do for your health. That’s why I judge this addiction harshly.</p>
<p>The “smoking” or “non” always made me laugh. I couldn’t really go to restaurants when I was little because it was always a crap shot of whether or not I’d be able to hear the next day. But really. It’s like… do you want to sit directly next to the smoker or five feet away? </p>
<p>Tomorrow is the 2nd anniversary of my fathers death. He was 75. He smoked heavily for a long time, quitting only as he retired. It was so sad for me to see all of his health problems, none of which he would admit came from his years of smoking. It was always allergies or his asthma or a cold or virus. Or his heart or his fibromyalgia. In his later years he had so many things wrong it was hard to figure out what the problem really was and I feel it contributed to an earlier death than it could have been. </p>
<p>The difference in health and fitness between my parents (smokers) and my IL’s (non-smokers) is astounding. It made my dad especially old before his time. His lack of exercise and his weight contributed also but my FIL is also heavier. </p>
<p>We have many friends who are retired and you can tell those who took care of themselves and those who didn’t. Smoking is one of those factors and anyone who doesn’t think so is fooling themselves. </p>