Drinking VS Smoking

[isign]

This is kind of a spin off. I was reading the smoking thread and it got me thinking about drinking. We all know about the effects of both tobacco and alcohol. Why does society seem to shun smoking, but accept drinking? What makes it so much worse thank drinking?

[boilermaker]

For me, I am not opposed to either so long as it does not infringe upon my rights to refrain from either.

You can drink a beer sitting right next to me and in no way influence my personal choice to partake of alcohol. But if you sit next to me and smoke a cigarette, you have influenced my personal decision as to whether I inhale cancerous smoke or not. And I didn't get a say in the matter.

I don't believe I should have the right to say you cannot smoke. But I should have the right to say you cannot smoke next to me.

[MLA]

Smoking is worse than drinking because smoking infringes on the rights of others. I think it's simple.

And I'm not talking about excessive drinking, which is a problem in and of itself, but of moderate, responsible drinking.

[isign]

I understand making illegal inside and around buildings. There's nothing I hate worse than going into a building and having to go through a field of smokers. What I don't understand is wanting to make it illegal. Yes it is a problem, but how many accidents are caused by drinking, how many underage accidents happen on a regular basis. Why not crack down on that too?

[artist]

If I want to smoke a cigarette because I am legally old enough to do so and I am on my own front porch, in my own car, with other smokers, not around non-smokers, then what difference does it make to anyone else?

If I wanted to smoke a cigarette in the past at a really old nasty dive bar where everyone else there was smoking, why shouldn't I be able to? If a non-smoker doesn't like it, they don't have to go to that business. I believe that business owner should be able to decide whether or not to allow smoking. Honestly, I have more problems with the practices of WalMart than I do with a bar that allows smoking.

If I am smoking a cigarette, the last thing I need is some overweight-cheeto eating-diabetic-high blood pressure-high cholestoral person lecturing me about health. Pot meet kettle. Just let me smoke my cigarette.

Not ALL smokers smoke while holding infants or transporting the soccer team in the van, not all smokers smoke right next to their non-smoking friends puffing smoke right onto them, not all smokers throw cigarette butts all over the planet, not all smokers are like that. You just don't notice the smokers who are polite about things and actually do practice some sort of etiquette. Heck, there's already plenty of etiquette just amongst the actual smokers. For example, don't EVER take a person's last cigarette. Only bum a certain number of cigarettes. Don't be that person that goes up to people all the time saying things like, "Could I just bum one? I'm trying to quit." Quit then! Or don't quit and buy your OWN smokes! Or just as annoying, "Can I just have a drag?" Unless you ask that of someone you're having sex with, that's kind of gross. Would you go up to a stranger and say, "Could I just have a bite of your salad?" And if you DO take a drag, take ONE drag, maybe two. Puff puff give! If you don't know how to inhale, it's obvious you're not really a smoker and just trying to "act cool". You don't look cool. You look really dumb pretending to be a smoker! If you DO bum a smoke, at least OFFER a quarter for it. If you give out a smoke, don't actually accept the quarter. If your date is trying to light your cigarette, you're supposed to gently allow your hand to touch his. Don't take someone's lighter. If you don't want people to bum your smokes all night, buy a really disgusting cheap brand. Nobody will want your GPCs. Chances are, nobody, at least no men will want your Virginia Slims. Anyway, with ALL THOSE RULES, trust me, a lot of smokers really do have etiquette involving what to do when around non-smokers, children, etc. It might surprise you. I don't assume that all beer drinkers are loud and spill beer all over me just because some a-hole did it once at a baseball game.

A cop will not give you an SUI or a SWI. Smokers may have bad breath, but they won't fail a breathalizer.

Smokers for the most part do not have their mood greatly affected by smoking. (It does have physical affects such as a more shaky hand or a buzz.) Even a moderate drinker will have his/her thinking impaired by drinking moderately.

Not all smokers are pack a day smokers. Some smoke a few cigarettes every couple of days or so. Some only feel the need to smoke when having a beer or a cup of coffee. Some people only smoke a cigar every year or so on special occasions. Granted a cigar is not a cigarette, it still is a type of tobacco.

Chewing tobacco is much more disgusting then cigarettes.

[lawyerlee]

I believe you can drink alcohol in moderation and even receive health benefits from moderate consumption. Smoking is bad for you no matter how little you do it, and it has the added bonus of being more harmful for people around you than for the smoker. Smoking is also inherently bad for the earth, while alcohol need not be so. There are even organic beers and wines that consider respect of the earth in their preparation.

[wendalah]

I like both!

[lawyerlee]

how many accidents are caused by drinking, how many underage accidents happen on a regular basis. Why not crack down on that too?
I don't disagree. But I don't think making an argument about why we need to be more foreceful about preventing drunk driving and underage drinking has any bearing at all on whether smoking should be legally permissible.

[Tanya]

I believe you can drink alcohol in moderation and even receive health benefits from moderate consumption. Smoking is bad for you no matter how little you do it, and it has the added bonus of being more harmful for people around you than for the smoker. Smoking is also inherently bad for the earth, while alcohol need not be so. There are even organic beers and wines that consider respect of the earth in their preparation.
Exactly what I tried to say in the other thread. ITA.

[MLA]

I believe I responded your points about considerate smokers, etc in the other thread, but I had to comment on this:

Chewing tobacco is much more disgusting then cigarettes.
First of all, while I agree that chewing tobacco is gross, I don't think it's more disgusting than cigarettes, and I doubt anyone who chews tobacco would agree with you. Second, chewing tobacco may be gross, but it doesn't infringe on my right to breathe the cleanest air possible.

Artist, this really is a losing battle that you're fighting. I admire your passion, but in this case, I really do think it's misplaced.

[artist]

I have to run out the door, but I did want to make one point:

American Spirits.

More on that later.

[LyLMyssChaos]

Good question, OP-er. I don't have much to add, but I am opposed to both.
*big surprise, eh? LOL :p

[katmg]

As someone who walks out my building (which supposedly doesn't allow smoking within 25 ft. of the doors :rolleyes: ) into a cloud of smoke on my way to my parking garage - I have to say even that minimal amount of smoke is a real bother. If someone was out there drinking a beer, having a glass of wine, etc - it wouldn't affect me at all.

I didn't think about it before, but being pregnant makes me a bit more sensitive to it.

[prudies]

I like both! Bwah ha!

:o me too. :o I wish cigarettes weren't so bad for you!

[kam]

If I am smoking a cigarette, the last thing I need is some overweight-cheeto eating-diabetic-high blood pressure-high cholestoral person lecturing me about health. Pot meet kettle. Just let me smoke my cigarette.

Wow. Um, wow. Artist, that is just terrible. You know that. Perhaps I'm more sensitive because of the diabetes that runs in my family (and anyone who knows diabetes know that sometimes being overweight is a symptom of the diabetes and not always vice versa), but yeah. I'm just in shock that someone who is normally sensitive to these kinds of issues could stereotype in this way.

Okay, I'm looking at this from a former smoker's perspective. Yes, it's a personal choice. Totally personal. That said, after having seen many family members go through lung cancer (which is pretty much a death sentence), not to mention other kinds of cancer, smoking basically guarantees you cancer or emphasema. There are rare cases out there where someone smokes 15 cigarettes daily for 50 years and is healthy, but that's NOT the norm. It adds to the national health crisis and drives health costs up. Unlike other forms of cancer where there is very little cause/effect, lung cancer is pretty easy to predict. Again, sure there are people with lung cancer who never smoked in their lives, but let's be realistic here. Drinking in moderation most likely won't cause liver disease. It's not as simple with cigarettes. If you smoke daily, whether it be 10 or 45, you are basically guaranteeing yourself a shorter life. So enjoy that cigarette. Just know that your points, whatever they may be after this point, is falling on deaf ears because of your so-called passion which is really coming across as a "f you" attitude.

[wendalah]

I wish cigarettes weren't so bad for you!

Yes, cigs are like sunbathing. So bad for you, but feels so nice.

Unfortunately they taste even better accompanied by a vodka tonic. :o

[wendalah]

BTW, not defending smoking because I do know it's a filthy habit--but wasn't there some infamous study out there that said being significantly overweight is worse for your health than smoking?

[kam]

Which, sunbathing or smoking? I'm a sapphire/tonic woman myself. ;)

[wendalah]

Sheer bliss=laying out in the sun, with an alcoholic drink AND a smoke.

(Not so good for you though. Hee.)

[kam]

BTW, not defending smoking because I do know it's a filthy habit--but wasn't there some infamous study out there that said being significantly overweight is worse for your health than smoking?

But the comparison here was drinking and smoking, no?

[wendalah]

No, I know. I just was jogged to the memory of the study by the fat cheeto-eating comment.

[kam]

I think the whole overweight thing is just so much more complex. Really, if you smoke, there are pretty direct cause/effect relationships to particular diseases (mentioned above). While other people can get the diseases, if you have them chances are you smoked. Being overweight can cause certain diseases in some people, not in others, can be in relationship to other factors (genetics, for examples), so while I'm sure you're right, it's still apples/oranges to me.

[wendalah]

I had some cheetos today (embarrassed)

[kam]

As well you should be, missy. Good thing you're not fat or diabetic or you'd have lots of explaining to do.

[kam]

Also artist, I don't mean to come off as a holier than thou bitch. The piece about the fat diabetic eating cheetos set me off mainly because I've heard this kind of thing in so many other cases in politics (c'mon - you've heard the whole "I don't want my tax dollars to go to a welfare recipient buying Gucci bags" argument just as much as me). It had that tenor which is why I had such a negative reaction to it.

[prudies]

Blech, I hate sitting in the sun. Well, directly. I'm fine under an umbrella.

Being overweight can cause certain diseases in some people, not in others Well, smoking can cause lung cancer in some, many even, but not in everyone who smokes.

Some people are lucky. They can smoke and eat like crap, and live to be a 100. Lucky them! But I don't smoke (okay, once in about 5 years!) and I don't eat crap.

Speaking of smoking versus poor eating habits, someone once told me that lung cancer rates in France are very low. I never looked into it, but that would be interesting.

[prudies]

I had some cheetos today (embarrassed)

I'm wagging my non-trans-fat-eating finger at you!

[KarenS]

I believe you can drink alcohol in moderation and even receive health benefits from moderate consumption. Smoking is bad for you no matter how little you do it, and it has the added bonus of being more harmful for people around you than for the smoker. Smoking is also inherently bad for the earth, while alcohol need not be so. There are even organic beers and wines that consider respect of the earth in their preparation.Yep.

And quite frankly, I'm appalled at the "fat diabetic high cholesterol" comment. I'll remember that when I think of my grandmother who was a dancer, extremely athletic, never overweight a day in her life, who died of complications from diabetes and my grandfather who grew up on a farm and worked his ass off and was (because of his lifestyle) incredibly fit and strong and had a heart attack and high cholesterol.

What an ignorant, sh*tty thing to say - especially from someone who usually knows better.

Karen

[amew]

I believe you can drink alcohol in moderation and even receive health benefits from moderate consumption. Smoking is bad for you no matter how little you do it, and it has the added bonus of being more harmful for people around you than for the smoker. Smoking is also inherently bad for the earth, while alcohol need not be so. There are even organic beers and wines that consider respect of the earth in their preparation.

Another ditto. Alcohol consumption has little to any proven harms and some reasonably well-established benefits if one does not consume to excess and avoids drinking while driving, operating heavy machinery, etc. The same cannot be said of smoking. Of the many, many social drinkers I have known, only one has battled a serious illness that can be attributed to drinking (and he was a very heavy drinker). But of much smaller subset of smokers I have known, many have died of smoking-related illnesses. I am well-aware that there are health risks to drinking and societal costs to drunk driving, but I just don't think it's comparable to smoking.

[curlyjr]

first of all, Artist I love you, your post said so many of the things I think. Anyway, both smoking and drinking are bad, but I think businesses should have a choice whether they want to be smoking or non-smoking. And I really do not think that Artist was in any way didding people who are diabetic. There is a difference between people with diabetes because of genetics and the people who suck down junk all their lives and end up with health problems.

[coquelicot]

Considering that I've lost a handful of relatives (my dad, my grandmother, my great-aunt, two uncles) to smoking-related illnesses, in my eyes smoking is worse. Plus being next to someone having a drink doesn't make my eyes water and my throat dry out to the point where I'm having a mini-asthma attack.

[artist]

Also artist, I don't mean to come off as a holier than thou bitch. The piece about the fat diabetic eating cheetos set me off mainly because I've heard this kind of thing in so many other cases in politics (c'mon - you've heard the whole "I don't want my tax dollars to go to a welfare recipient buying Gucci bags" argument just as much as me). It had that tenor which is why I had such a negative reaction to it.

kam-

You're absolutely right. I was wrong about the fat/diabetic comment. FWIW I lost one of my really good friends, a young man who was 25, thin, athetic, in shape, ate very healthy...to diabetes. He had dreams of being a doctor and then going to Africa or something to practice medicine, and he also wanted to marry a great woman and have some kids. I think he was going to join the military to help fund his med school. Unfortunately though, he died one day. He had run a 10K race probably the day before. He and I had plans to get coffee. He called to tell me he was too tired and couldn't meet me for coffee. He lived alone. I couldn't get a hold of him for that whole week until I called and his brother answered the phone to tell me, "Tom's not here. Tom is dead. He went into diabetic shock." I only got to know Tom for part of one year. He was one of the kindest people I've ever known. I still miss him of course. So, you're right, my comment about diabetes, about weight was wrong. I am sorry.

And believe me, I know very well smoking is bad for you. I still smoke. Not a ton, but I do. I plan to eventually quit. My husband I think also plans to eventually quit. We're just not ready yet. I have a million reasons why I should quit, but I just don't want to yet.

I get it that non-smokers don't want to be subjected to my smoking. That's why I try to be extra considerate of that. I purposefully stand very very far away from them. I don't smoke inside my own house. Many of my smoker friends have the same rules for their own homes. I do allow smoking on my front porch (an enclosed porch) only because our winters get so damned cold.

Although many of you disagree, I am also not that convinced that drinking is somehow any better than smoking. I think they are both bad. I get that there are a few studies out there saying a glass of red wine a day can be good for a woman's heart. I still think it's a little silly to go out drinking, even moderately, and claim that it's "healthy". I like good ice-cream, but when I eat it, I know it's full of fat and all sorts of crap. It sure tastes good though and makes me feel happy. Not that I eat ice-cream everyday, but when I eat it, I don't get non-fat or low-fat. I go for the Ben&Jerry's pack as much fat as you can into the carton kind of ice-cream. To me, if ice-cream has no fat, what's the point? I want good full of bad crap ice-cream and I want to enjoy it when I eat it. I don't want to think about what's in it. I just want to eat it and then go on with my day. When I have a cigarette, I just want to smoke it. I most certainly don't want some annoying preachy person telling me I should not, must not, or cannot.

So, that's the part that bugs me. Non-smokers (sometimes former smokers) going on and on an on and on, preaching at smokers about how gross, rude, etc. they are. First of all, not ALL smokers are that way. Second of all, preachiness is NOT going to get anyone to quit smoking. For me, I don't think it's cost either that will get me to quit. For me to quit, it will be MY decision. It would be nice if I could quit long before having children. However, if I TTC, you bet I will quit! Or, godforbid I become pregnant despite being on birth control, of course I would quit. And if I were pregnant, I would not stand around people who were smoking. That is not to say that I would get all preachy if a friend of mine wanted to smoke. It's just that I would expect that friend to smoke AWAY from me, or if I had kids, away from them. I almost never smoke even in view of children, let alone near them. I just don't, and I know other smokers who share that way of thinking.

My comment was wrong. I don't actually feel that way about overweight people, people with diabetes, etc. I just get annoyed with hypocricy. Most people have some sort of a vice. When others get preachy about someone else's vice, it's irritating. I get that people want no smoking in public places. The law is already in place, there's not much I can do about it. But when people start saying things like they just wish smoking were completely illegal for everyone, that to me is just plain stupid besides being preachy. I am a grown woman. I pay my taxes. I do my part for the community. If I want to have a cigarette at the end of the day on my OWN patio, I am going to, and I don't need people to shame me for it.

[MLA]

I get that people want no smoking in public places. The law is already in place, there's not much I can do about it. But when people start saying things like they just wish smoking were completely illegal for everyone, that to me is just plain stupid besides being preachy. I am a grown woman. I pay my taxes. I do my part for the community. If I want to have a cigarette at the end of the day on my OWN patio, I am going to, and I don't need people to shame me for it.


I don't think there are very many people out there (and certainly very few on these boards) who think that making smoking illegal is a good idea. What everyone seems to be saying is that banning it in public places is the right thing to do for the good of public health. You can chain smoke in your house, on your property, on your porch (just don't expect me to want to come visit!) and I couldn't care less. However, if you're smoking in a public place, and it's affecting me, you bet I have a problem with it. Smoking and drinking just aren't comparable, IMO.

[Tanya]

Although many of you disagree, I am also not that convinced that drinking is somehow any better than smoking. I think they are both bad. I get that there are a few studies out there saying a glass of red wine a day can be good for a woman's heart. I still think it's a little silly to go out drinking, even moderately, and claim that it's "healthy".
It's not an opinion, it's fact. No matter what you think or want to believe, that won't change. Of course, people don't go out and drink solely because it's healthy, but it's a fact that there are health benefits--I can post them again if you'd like. Smoking has nil.

[msnicolea]

There are more than "a few" studies that have illustrated the benefits of moderate wine consumption--saying you don't believe it doesn't make it less true.

[MLA]

There are more than "a few" studies that have illustrated the benefits of moderate wine consumption--saying you don't believe it doesn't make it less true.


Yup. Artist, saying that you don't believe the science is sort of like the strict creationists who choose not to accept evolution, saying that there are plenty of studies saying it's not true, when, in fact, there are far more studies by far more respected scientists saying that it happens.

I only bring this up because if I remember correctly, you were a strong proponent of evolution and didn't understand how anyone could just choose to ignore the evidence. In this instance, you're resembling those people who completely baffled you.

[PinkMartini]

What everyone seems to be saying is that banning it in public places is the right thing to do for the good of public health. You can chain smoke in your house, on your property, on your porch (just don't expect me to want to come visit!) and I couldn't care less. However, if you're smoking in a public place, and it's affecting me, you bet I have a problem with it. Smoking and drinking just aren't comparable, IMO.

ITA!

[wendalah]

Non-smokers (sometimes former smokers) going on and on an on and on, preaching at smokers about how gross, rude, etc. they are.

Again, I'm not really out to defend smoking as a healthy habit or anything--but I do have to agree with this. As I mentioned I do have a cigarette every now and then, usually when out with my girlfriends. One time, we were sharing a smoke outside of a restaurant (away from anyone's breathing range) and a woman drove by and yelled, really snottily, "Enjoy your cancer." Ooooh, okay, Ms. Holier-Than-Thou, your Nobel Peace Prize is in the mail.

[artist]

Again, I'm not really out to defend smoking as a healthy habit or anything--but I do have to agree with this. As I mentioned I do have a cigarette every now and then, usually when out with my girlfriends. One time, we were sharing a smoke outside of a restaurant (away from anyone's breathing range) and a woman drove by and yelled, really snottily, "Enjoy your cancer." Ooooh, okay, Ms. Holier-Than-Thou, your Nobel Peace Prize is in the mail.

Thank you for understanding!

For those who are enjoying their moderate wine and drinking it for their hearts...what to you is "moderate" and do you only drink it moderately? How often do you go over the limit of "moderate"?

[KarenS]

For those who are enjoying their moderate wine and drinking it for their hearts...what to you is "moderate" and do you only drink it moderately? How often do you go over the limit of "moderate"?I drink one glass of wine (usually red because I like red better than white) or one beer with dinner 3-4 days a week. Every once in a while I'll have a second glass or a second beer. I drink hard liquor about once a month in a mixed drink when we go out to dinner.

We never drink just to drink or go out for the express purpose of drinking. The only times I go over that limit is around the holidays when we (as a family) tend to drink champagne a lot and on New Years Eve when FIL makes his famous frozen whiskey sours. Even so, DH and I haven't been drunk since the night my mom died, which was 6 years ago (actually I was drunk, he wasn't).

Also just to be clear, I'm not drinking just because it's good for my heart. I enjoy the taste of certain drinks - good beer, red wine, and some mixed drinks. I don't drink anything that doesn't taste good and I never choose my drinks based on how fast they'll make me drunk. But I'm not going ot pretend that I'm going around saying "oh I only drink for the good of my health" becuase that's hooey. I drink because I like the taste. I don't drink to excess because I grew up with alcoholic parents and drunks or being drunk is abhorrent to me.

Karen

[artist]

Thank you Karen. That's a pretty honest answer and from what I can observe from people I know (both alcoholics and non-alcoholics) what you describe IS pretty moderate! I think even many non-alcoholics (if you want to call it that) that I know/have seen who claim to drink "moderately" are definitely not "moderate" in the same sense you are. Meaning, maybe they have more then the two drinks, don't get "drunk", but might get a wee bit tipsy or buzzed. But I still wouldn't think of that person as an alcoholic for a number of reasons, mostly because they probably are not doing that all the time, they do manage to stop (maybe after 3 instead of after 2 though, but it's not like they drink until they fall asleep), they like you drink what tastes good, not taking shots of liquor for the thrill of it and for the "getting drunk fast" element, etc. But those people are more likely to go out, get sorta tipsy maybe once a month, but maybe they have a few beers with their dinner at home. Although, I'd say my parents are probably very "moderate" in the same way you are. My mom likes wine here and there. I don't recall really ever seeing her "drunk". I've maybe seen her a couple of times at a dinner party act like she might have a slight buzz or something, but she never gets "drunk". My dad (who is not an alcoholic) almost never drinks. It's not that he's against it, it's just not his thing. Occasionally I've seen him with a beer or a glass of wine, but he'd much rather have a Coke or a mineral water. I think he's just not into the taste of beer or wine and I seriously can't even picture him drinking hard liquor. I've seen him smoke a cigar a few times in my life.

[KarenS]

Well, I have to admit that the other reason I don't drink more is becuase I'm a lightweight. Getting tipsy makes me sleepy - so it's not much fun for me! If we have friends over I really have to stop after 2 beers because 1/2 way thru the third one all I want to do is curl up on the sofa and nap! :D

I've never been a big drinker, so I never developed any kind of tolerance for it.

But truly there is very little I can think of that tastes better than a really icy cold beer on a hot afternoon, while hanging out on the porch grilling burgers!

K.

[ummserious]

I'm one of those that doesn't care so much as long as I don't have to inhale the smoke.

A teeny bit off topic:
Posted by Prudies
Speaking of smoking versus poor eating habits, someone once told me that lung cancer rates in France are very low. I never looked into it, but that would be interesting.

I always get the sense that Americans are quite excessive about our habits in general and happier with cheaper products; I am only wondering here but it could be related to quantity and quality. I also wonder how close the products are. There is such an abundance of processing and chemicals in many of our products here like the ridiculous amount of processed foods in our stores.

But I think the real issue is that there is not enough moderation when it comes to plenty of habits that could be ok enough in smaller doses. Drinking, smoking, eating, shopping, sunbathing.

[keska]

I don't think smoking or drinking should be illegal, but I think smoking should be restricted to areas where nonsmokers don't come into contact with the smoke. My current peeve with the issue is smoking in apartment buildings. My neighbors smoke and it comes under our front door and is really awful. We have to stuff blankets under our door and we bought a giant air filter that we keep right next to it. Even then, we are often forced to go up to the 3rd floor to get away from the smell. That's the one time when smoking in a private home is a big problem for me and I seriously wish we could just ban it indoors altogether.

[Delta]

This is kind of a spin off. I was reading the smoking thread and it got me thinking about drinking. We all know about the effects of both tobacco and alcohol. Why does society seem to shun smoking, but accept drinking? What makes it so much worse thank drinking?Because a glass of red wine after a long day is the best thing ever. And cracking open an ice cold beer on a college football Saturday comes pretty dang close to that.

I smoked from the time I was 18 until I was 26 and got pregnant. Quitting smoking was the 4th best thing I have ever done in my life and I've never felt better. Smoking has no redeeming qualities whatsoever. It's just slow poison. (But that doesn't mean that I think it's OK for a pregnant woman to be prosecuted for it - no way.)

[KarenS]

My neighbors smoke and it comes under our front door and is really awful.Yeah, our neighbor goes out onto his back patio to smoke and it comes right into our house - in the spring and fall it's particularly bad because I like to keep the windows open. But even in the summer and winter it gets sucked into the ventilation system somehow.

And dont' get me started on "smoking areas" that are right outside the main entrance to a building. Yeah, it doesn't help to have a non-smoking building if you have to walk through the smoke of 8 smokers to get in the door.

Karen

[jnettie]

Well, from what I understand, tobacco companies have designed cigarettes to be addictive to everyone. They add things to the tobacco to make them more addictive. That's how they lost the lawsuits against them. It was documented in the companies that this is what they were doing.

Meanwhie, alcohol is not as readily addictve at cigarettes. You can drink on an off for your entire life and not become addicted. I don't think that's possible with cigarettes.

[wendalah]

You can drink on an off for your entire life and not become addicted. I don't think that's possible with cigarettes.


I'm a rare case, but I've smoked on and off at will since I was a teenager.

[PG-rated]

Yeah, me too (I quit for good about five years ago), but I consider myself to be extremely lucky, and an exception to the rule. I also always kept an eye on my cigarette consumption, and cut back as soon as I started to want a cigarette a little too badly. I think I could've become addicted if I hadn't been so careful about it.

[Esq.]

I was a social smoker until I got pg. I have always been able to go without cigarettes, and never really became addicted. Not to say that others are not addicted, bc my DH definitely was. I, also, have always considered myself lucky that I could smoke while out bar hopping with friends and not need one the next day.

[jnettie]

Hey, stop ruining my point! ;)

Well, all in all, cigarettes are far more addictive than alcohol. And the potential side effects of smoking are far greater for not only the smoker but the people around that smoker. I, for example, spent most of my young childhood with bronchitis because my Dad was a smoker. And we've lost far too many people at a young age due to smoking related illnesses.

[wendalah]

Agreed, and from what I've heard, cigs are one of the hardest addictions to quit.

[PinkMartini]

Well, all in all, cigarettes are far more addictive than alcohol.

I would add to the above point "For moderate users" because damn if alcoholics don't have a tough time quitting drinking....

My entire family is made up of either alcoholics or drug users (or both!) and most of them smoke as well. A few are 'moderate' users of alcohol and yes, I'd have to agree smoking is far more addictive than that. But for the alcoholics I know, I'd say quitting drinking is far more addictive than smoking

[jnettie]

I agree, the process of actually quitting either is very difficult. But there is a different sort of addiction between Nicoteen and alcohol, aside from the fact that cigarettes are designed to be addictive, while alcohol is not. I would guess that there are far more social drinkers that aren't addicted to alcohol than social smokers who aren't addicted to cigarettes.

And, I have my share of alchoholics, smokers, and drug addicts in my family as well, and have witnessed the good and the bad. I'd say that the emotional aspects of dealing with an alcoholic is far worse than dealing with a smoker (except for when that smoker is trying to kick his or her addiction to nicoteen, but then that's really only for a few months!), so I'd take a smoker over an alcoholic anyday. Meanwhile, the impact that smoking has on the health of not only the smoker but also those around him or her is far worse than the drinker.

Did you follow that? :p

[KarenS]

I think the difference is that people who become alcoholics are people with addictive personalities. Alcohol itself, as a substance, is not addictive.

OTOH, cigarettes *are* addictive and you can become physically addicted to them even if you don't have an addictive personality.

Karen

[BrownEyedGirl]

I can't stand being exposed to smoke. I think it should be my right to not have to breathe in cancer causing air.

As for drinking v. smoking, here's how I look at it...

Other people drinking pretty has the potential to cause me danger when they are driving under the influence...which is illegal.

Other people smoking has the potential to cause me danger if they are anywhere near me.

[ysolde]

Sheer bliss=laying out in the sun, with an alcoholic drink AND a smoke.

(Not so good for you though. Hee.)

That was me at 21. Ahh.