I am already upset with today's news as noted in my post regarding the British television programming, but I am even more irate now reading a piece from the Washington Post that the big tobacco companies have been raising the nicotine content in the most popular cigarettes over the past eight years (1998 - 2006).

The brands most popular with high school smokers (Marlboro, Newport and Camel) have been increased by up to 14% nicotine content since 1998, and the brand most popular with African Americans, Kool, has increased a whopping 20%.

I smoked for just over 30 years, and quit for the final time in January '96. If I was a smoker now and trying to quit, and found out that the tobacco companies were dealing with me the same as any drug dealer by doing their best to increase my dependency, I would be sorely tempted to do something that would most likely get me in trouble. I hope these people are sued, screwed, jailed and tattooed.....

I am no fan of big tobacco companies but I have no sympathy for those who smoke either. Its rediculous..hell they should be happy they are getting more bang for their buck.

Yeah that is kind of like being mad that McDonalds has the Supersize option.
I do feel for smokers though. It must be torture to be tied to a fix every hour or so.

Yeah that is kind of like being mad that McDonalds has the Supersize option.
I do feel for smokers though. It must be torture to be tied to a fix every hour or so.

The difference being that McDonalds does not sell a product with a proven addictive drug content. Kids in high school are into experimentation, and peer pressure plays a large part in acceptance; so, many kids will at least try smoking to be part of the crowd or to look cool, or just to rebel against the folks and the rules. The higher nicotine content is going to give that rush that much faster, and so how many more are going to end up being hooked on cigarettes that would posssibly not have stuck with smoking otherwise.

The FDA should really move to classify nicotine and regulate it, considering all the medical research they have which has been used successfully in legal actions. Legalize pot, ban cigarettes:p

I never understood that either. Something that costs the people of this country so many lives and so much money in health care problems is legal to use is beyond me.

No one makes people smoke.
My mom has smoked for as long as I can remember. A lot of my friends did the same as I was growing up. Just about every member of my family has picked up the habit.
I never started smoking.
It's a willpower issue. Don't like the habit? Don't start.
And pot has more carcinogins than tobacco.

http://www.kidshealth.org/PageManager.jsp?dn=firststudenthealthzone&lic=201&cat_id=20334&article_set=36780&ps=604

Marijuana smoke has 50% to 70% more carcinogens (cancer-causing substances) than cigarette smoke does.

The difference being that McDonalds does not sell a product with a proven addictive drug content.

Recent studies have shown this statement to be somewhat false. No they aren't selling drugs, but the food itself the way it's prepared HAVE shown to have addictive properties. Well and yes, caffeine is a drug, and it's very addictive. Ever have one of those nasty caffeine headaches when you don't get your daily fix? Caffeine has actual physical withdrawl symptoms.

No one makes people smoke.
My mom has smoked for as long as I can remember. A lot of my friends did the same as I was growing up. Just about every member of my family has picked up the habit.
I never started smoking.
It's a willpower issue. Don't like the habit? Don't start.
And pot has more carcinogins than tobacco.

http://www.kidshealth.org/PageManager.jsp?dn=firststudenthealthzone&lic=201&cat_id=20334&article_set=36780&ps=604 (http://www.kidshealth.org/PageManager.jsp?dn=firststudenthealthzone&lic=201&cat_id=20334&article_set=36780&ps=604)

You dont have to smoke pot (which I beleive creates the cacinogens) to get the benefits.

Hash Brownies!!!!

Dad died from smoking, mom now smokes 3 packs a day. None of the us kids ever picked up the habit, find it disgusting. But Nicotine is incredibly adictive. and you have to remmeber that mary jane isnt filtered like cigarettes which is one of the reasons for higher carcinogines. Never tried any illegal drugs either just for the record.

Rev

Even if marijuana has a higher proportion of carcinogens than tobacco relative to volume consumed, is it common to smoke pot in quantities analogous to a relatively light habit of half a pack of cigarettes per day?

Only when I was in college.

Most times people start smoking when they are teenagers and mortality just is not thought of much that age. Smoking for the most part is not felt until "later" and as a teenager "later" is not percieved always so well. Making cigs more addicting is not right, then when that teenager decides it was stupid to start smoking, he is going to have more difficulty getting rid of a mistake he made when he was young. Just is not right to "legally" be able to do that. :(

Is there any proof that actually "more" nicotine makes you that much more dependant on it? I'd like to see it...

I agree that most of the bad things that result from smoking happen down the road. The body is able to combat the effects of the constant attack for a pretty long time.

However, you really have to try to be able to tolerate smoking. I have never met a smoker that just picked it up and from the get go said "yeah I really like this".

Both my parents smoked when I was a kid (about 25 years ago). My dad told me that they used to advertise smoking as being beneficial for things like digestion. The military would put cigarettes in their C rations or whatever they used to call them. It built a generation of smokers in my opinion. Now only about 25% of the people in USA smoke. People are getting making decisions to stop or not start. Is it easy to quit? Doesn't look like it.

I don't envy people having to go through the ordeal of trying to quit. I also don't envy the people who (and I'm sure some of you reading this are in the mix) have to get a fix, which probably creeps closer and closer together over the years.

Is there any proof that actually "more" nicotine makes you that much more dependant on it? I'd like to see it...
Maybe not more dependant, but faster?

And about the "smoker" generation, it reminds me ads about alcohol, something like city bus drivers cheering about "one glass and I'm ready to work!", in 70's.
Good old times... :o


My father made me "try" smoking when I was 10, he offered me a cigar. No need to mention he didn't specify that I shouldn't swallow smoke...

Never tried again and never wanted to! :)


*note for later, watch "Thank you for smoking"*