Smoking is... good?

[Deleted member 8431]

Interesting. One day, if I can, I'll definitely try growing some just for the kicks.

So far, I am enjoying some Flue Cured Virginia Bright, Red and some Oriental/Turkish Izmir. The Virginia Bright is good, not too smooth, not to harsh - just perfect. The Virginia Red is harsher though but still very good. The Izmir is just the smoothest of the three. Mixing some Red and Izmir is very good and I like the Virginia Bright straight. I also use OCB unbleached hemp paper (there's a convenience store that has it near my place fortunately). They are King-sized so I roll myself some thin and long ciggies. No filters for now.

God I love smoking tobacco! Even more since I smoke the pure stuff. No more buzz/body load as with commercial cigarettes (especially in the morning). Just a soothing feeling through the body and very nice mind-boost.

Since then I tried one commercial cigarette and let me tell you that it was just disgusting after being used to pure tobacco for a while. The difference is mind-boggling.

Enjoy your smoke!

 

[Psalehesost]

On the subject of other ways of using tobacco - since this occasionally comes up in this thread - I recently caught a cold, and happened to read of a simple way to clear the nose. And that's by using snuff (not to be confused with snus, the oral tobacco) - inhaling some very finely ground, or powdered, tobacco into each nostril. I simply used some shredded tobacco from the bottom of my tin - otherwise used to stuff my pipe - since at the bottom there's some that's much finer than the rest.

It didn't burn nearly as much as I expected, and felt refreshing. And soon the nose felt better and became unclogged.

I think I'll try this out on other occasions also, not just as a remedy. Though I think smoking, and using snus, will remain the main ways I use tobacco.

 

[Maat]

On the subject of other ways of using tobacco - since this occasionally comes up in this thread - I recently caught a cold, and happened to read of a simple way to clear the nose. And that's by using snuff (not to be confused with snus, the oral tobacco) - inhaling some very finely ground, or powdered, tobacco into each nostril. I simply used some shredded tobacco from the bottom of my tin - otherwise used to stuff my pipe - since at the bottom there's some that's much finer than the rest.

It didn't burn nearly as much as I expected, and felt refreshing. And soon the nose felt better and became unclogged.

I think I'll try this out on other occasions also, not just as a remedy. Though I think smoking, and using snus, will remain the main ways I use tobacco.

You know, salted water or citrus (more efficient but more harsh, believe me !) really do the job too. I'm not sure tobacco has an added value in that.

 

[SMM]

On the subject of other ways of using tobacco - since this occasionally comes up in this thread - I recently caught a cold, and happened to read of a simple way to clear the nose. And that's by using snuff (not to be confused with snus, the oral tobacco) - inhaling some very finely ground, or powdered, tobacco into each nostril. I simply used some shredded tobacco from the bottom of my tin - otherwise used to stuff my pipe - since at the bottom there's some that's much finer than the rest.

It didn't burn nearly as much as I expected, and felt refreshing. And soon the nose felt better and became unclogged.

I think I'll try this out on other occasions also, not just as a remedy. Though I think smoking, and using snus, will remain the main ways I use tobacco.

You know, salted water or citrus (more efficient but more harsh, believe me !) really do the job too. I'm not sure tobacco has an added value in that.

Psalehesost, I tried snus a few times. The watermelon flavour really had my neurons firing, very odd buzz sensations. Alternate ways of tobacco ingestion seems to have different pronounced effects, depending on means [smoking, chewing, etc.] & organs most directly affected.
More than one way to get nicotinic benefits I suppose.

Saltwater or citrus, alongside some other acidic compounds, I've come across.. like gargling salt water? Or inhaling? Caraway & cumin seeds are said to be of some benefit.

 

[Deleted member 8431]

I have a question for you guys.

Filters have been discussed in this thread but what I want to know is if there's any potential danger/harm in not using any. Not that I think that pure tobacco is toxic in itself but I was rather thinking about tar/resin/particles that could be inhaled. I know the lungs produce a layer of protective mucous when you smoke but is it enough to protect them from tar/resin/particles over the long run? I'm thinking that yes but I just want to make sure.

I smoke pure tobacco with organic paper.

Thanks a bunch!

 

[thorbiorn]

Attached is a poster I found on the back cover of a program of a Copenhagen city festival celebrating philosophy.

_http://issuu.com/goldendays/docs/final_program_goldendaysfestival201?e=3784479/4360732#node- look at page 40.

The poster shows a woman smoking a cigarette and saying 'I have also changed to Aristotle' In the lower right corner there is a pack of cigarettes with the brand Aristotle! I though this ad was cool considering that I am in a country that is two steps behind the US when it comes to a possible intervention in Syria and where a court recently ruled that it is okay to label any 9/11 dissident an idiot even if he is an accomplished academic.

 

[goyacobol]

I just tried my first cigarettes today. I received the American Spirit coupons by registering and used them to get some organics and menthols.

When I first lit one up I smoked it like a cigar and just had a mouthful of smoke :P. I have only smoked cigars and a pipe and never inhaled, so it took me a while to get used to it. The organic was quite harsh on my throat, but the menthol tasted nice. When I exhale and get the smoke in my eyes it burns, is this the same for everyone?

I also broke my first one in half because I was in my car and opening the ash tray before lighting and it hit the gear shift and severed. I wonder if that was anything symbolic. I uttered something mechanically as I did this too even though they were mostly free . I was surprised at the length of time to smoke a cigarette, it seems only to be 5-8 puffs. I guess I'm used to cigars, which are too long to me.

My sister and dad didn't like the idea of me smoking cigarettes in the house. My dad especially said he didn't want me to smoke them inside. But I smoked my pipe in my room a few weeks ago and noone noticed. A lot of the smokers I know go outside to smoke these days though.

I resumed smoking after quitting for over 40 years (considering the C's remarks about possible protective benefits). I first tried the American Spirit organic blend and smoked them for quite awhile but thought they were kind of harsh on the throat. I then tried most of the styles AS offer (except the light ones).

I did not previously smoke or like menthol cigarettes but after trying them I thought the AS menthol were less harsh and very light on the menthol so I switched to the menthol ones. After smoking the menthol cigarets several months I noticed they were announcing a new package design for their menthol cigarets with a card insert on the old package. This week I bought some and they had the new package. I did notice a different taste. When I examined the new packaging I read that they are now organic tobacco with "non-toxic" filters and organic menthol.

To me the new menthols are slightly more harsh but not quite as harsh as the regular organic AS. I am thankful for the organic ingredients since I have been looking for an alternative to even the non-additive tobacco which is grown with fertilizer containing at least some amounts of radiation as I now understand. So, for those who would prefer menthol the new AS menthol may be better than some that are not organic.

I have also been looking for other organic options and ran across a new small company trying to introduce some competition for American Spirit. Due to FDA regulations and red tape for new tobacco product licensing they had to be creative and finally create the product as a cigarillo which makes it easer to get on the market. They had to increase the weight of the cigarillo and use tobacco and flax instead of paper wrapping. I had ordered a 2 pack minimum size order before noticing the AS menthol change.

The test order has not arrived yet. The shipping is expensive ($6) for just 2 packs. If I like them I would order a carton at a time since the shipping is less by the carton ($11.50). Even with the pricy shipping the price per pack for a carton would be about $6 which is less than I am paying for the American Spirit organics locally.

You can see the details for the Hestia Tobacco Company at _http://hestiatobacco.com/ which is at least a new small independent company offering an organic tobacco. This not a sales pitch since I haven't tried them yet.

Reading this topic is like "thinking with a hammer" for me. I am just trying to find that better tobacco solution and all of the comments here really help.

Thanks,

goyacobol

 

[Voyageur]

Have just heard from a relative (very upset) that her apartment place in the U.S., San Francisco, had instituted some sort of in-house bylaw for smoking; basically, even on ones own deck. Apparently, this was done some time ago and ignored by the collective of tenants; instituted by the live-in overseer of the building. Apparently also, smoking medical marijuana (mm) is ok though (there are a number of HIV tenants there who rely on this). The tenant neighbors have no problem with either of these smoking applications, and it just seems that this gestapo overseer watches her every move and then sent her a scolding letter about tobacco use and being in violation of the in-house bylaw. Noted is that they live in a rent controlled building (dating back to the early 80's), so they do not want to jeopardize this - which may be part of the overseers objective.

Was going to offer some advice; similar to the rights of smoking (mm), in that she write back to the building authoritarian; copy the tenants also, and explain she has early signs of, lets say Parkinson's, and that smoking has been studied that offers many benefits to this and other diseases. As such, would you deny me the means of treatment; or something like that.

Has any one gone through this, and if so, what advise might help turn the tides of this, short of moving?

Thanks.

 

[aaronfransen]

It seems the anti smoking lobby is getting ever more powerful.

I own my own house (okay, technically the bank owns it) but I still choose to smoke my pipe outside.

Seems odd that they can make a rule about smoking on the balcony.

 

[K.ArtPark]

Hi Everyone,


Recently, I shared my experiences on another thread about starting smoking this year (I think it has actually been about 6 months now) and that can be found here.


In almost all ways, my experience has been positive, but I wanted to address an aspect that is of concern for me.


For the first 5 months or so, I was smoking only Yuma brand cigarettes, which are certified organic. Actually I had tried (and enjoyed) some clove cigarettes in that time but decided to stop those as I would suffer too much; I would wake up in the morning with really restricted breathing.


Recently I switched to some additive and pesticide free tobacco and started rolling my own cigarettes. I found that this was profoundly more enjoyable than the Yuma's. However, about two weeks or so after, I started having this rushing in my chest which is really uncomfortable and concerning. My wife has listened to my heart in these times and has said that my heart is skipping beats.


I have tried smoking less and have also tried adding filters to the roll-my-owns but the "rushing" still persists. In fact, I haven't smoked since Saturday afternoon (this being Monday late morning now) and the rushing in my chest is still there, particularly in times of rest. I will note that this "rushing" in my heart happened about 2.5 months ago as well and in that case I had to sit down and stop the work I was doing.


I think it is important to add as well that my father died of heart disease and so there is a chance that I may have heart issues in my genetics. I have had one of those heart scans (a few years ago) and they found that my heart is a tad enlarged, however they said that that is not really an issue and they generally found my heart to be healthy.


I am wondering if anyone can provide any thoughts or suggestions in this. Have you had similar experiences and how did you deal with them? Honestly, I have grown to enjoy smoking and would like to continue but if it is a health concern, then I would stop. However, I would like to make a fully informed decision.


Thanks in advance for your input.

 

[Cosmos]

kevin2themystic, how is your diet looking like at the moment?

 

[Mr. Premise]

If you think it's affecting your heart you should probably quit.

 

[K.ArtPark]

kevin2themystic, how is your diet looking like at the moment?

I knew that someone would ask that and was considering posting a follow-up about it. I agree that is another relevant aspect of this.


Maybe a year and a half ago I decided to go gluten free, dairy free, soy and corn free. For the first year or so, I wasn't really strict with it but in the last month or two I really committed to going completely gluten free as well as free of all of the other things I mentioned.

I have been reading Wheat Belly and have since decided to cut all of the gluten free breads from my diet; that was about 1.5 months ago. I might have the odd gluten free cookie, but that is not often.


Also, I have dramatically increased my fat consumption. I also started drinking bulletproof coffee around the same time (which involves grass-fed butter and MCT oil) which I drink every morning. For breakfast or lunch I usually have a combination of bacon, eggs, sausage and avocado. Dinner is usually still meat but a little more carby in terms of veggies.

With these changes I have noticed a drop in lbs ... about 10 - 15 over the last month and a half or so. Note that I could still lose about 20-25 lbs to be at optimal weight.


So, it seems I am floating somewhere between paleo and ketogenic and my sense is that I am not informed enough yet about how to structure my diet.

I hope that answers your question, Pashalis.

 

[Mr. Premise]

Update on the tobacco growing project. I've got 99% of the 2013 crop harvested and hanging. 100 plants, about 18 varieties. This year I bagged flower heads on most varieties for seed saving. I also built an inexpensive flue curing chamber out of a galvanized steel garbage can and a crockpot to flue cure the Virginia varieties. I also got a hand me down refrigerator kiln for regular quick aging.

As always the curing is the hardest part. Last year I had no kiln so I had to wait a year for the tobacco to age naturally, but now I can smoke my 2012 crop. I like it.

Also, for those who are thinking of growing tobacco, this year I found three varieties that don't need much aging, they taste good right away. One real interesting one is Silver River which some old farmer in Ohio had in a drawer or something. It has an intruiging minty flavor and tastes good right after drying. It seems a to be a Burley variety but it doesn't taste like Burley at all.

Then, for a flue cured Virginia style variety that doesn't need aging I grew a couple of African Red plants. They grow huge, almost 8ft tall and have a nice mild flavor and are fairly high in nicotine.

And for a tasty, quick curing Turkish variety, I would recommend Bursa.

 

[Cosmos]

kevin2themystic, how is your diet looking like at the moment?

I knew that someone would ask that and was considering posting a follow-up about it. I agree that is another relevant aspect of this.


Maybe a year and a half ago I decided to go gluten free, dairy free, soy and corn free. For the first year or so, I wasn't really strict with it but in the last month or two I really committed to going completely gluten free as well as free of all of the other things I mentioned.

I have been reading Wheat Belly and have since decided to cut all of the gluten free breads from my diet; that was about 1.5 months ago. I might have the odd gluten free cookie, but that is not often.

That is actually still a fairly short time of being completely gluten/milk free (many common brands out there who claim that their products are gluten/milk free aren't really free of it! Keep that in mind! My personal solution is that I make my own stuff, then at least I know what is in my food :)). From experience and research here and elsewhere it seems that it can take at least a half year up to several years of complete elimination of gluten/milk before your body can fully recover from it. Also it should be made clear that when it comes down to gluten/milk, any slip be it as minimal as it gets, can and will have a profound affect on you. So when we suggest that you should eliminate gluten/milk, that actually means 100% with no exceptions or slips. That might take a while to get there at first but it will proof to be of great benefit if you try to stick to it.

Also, I have dramatically increased my fat consumption. I also started drinking bulletproof coffee around the same time (which involves grass-fed butter and MCT oil) which I drink every morning. For breakfast or lunch I usually have a combination of bacon, eggs, sausage and avocado. Dinner is usually still meat but a little more carby in terms of veggies.

With these changes I have noticed a drop in lbs ... about 10 - 15 over the last month and a half or so. Note that I could still lose about 20-25 lbs to be at optimal weight.


So, it seems I am floating somewhere between paleo and ketogenic and my sense is that I am not informed enough yet about how to structure my diet.

I hope that answers your question, Pashalis.

As it is the case with almost everybody nowadays, our guts are so damaged by eating all that stuff for such a long time, that it first needs a fair amount of time to heal from those inflammatory foods that have taken their tall in our bodies. And that can take at least several months and in some cases even years... So I suggest for the moment that you try to first be strict with gluten/milk and sugar products for a considerable amount of time, before fully engaging into a high meat/fat diet... I think that should be your first priority at the moment.

As it is stated in this article on SOTT:

How Long Does That Tiny Bit of Gluten Affect Your Body?

Sometimes people eat a piece of cake even though they know they have gluten sensitivity, gut dysbiosis, or systemic inflammation. It's one piece, right?

Latest research shows that the smallest amount of gluten can trigger inflammation and autoimmune reactions lasting for up to six months in gluten sensitive individuals. Coffee also has been found to be the most harmful food for those with gluten intolerance.

Effects Last Longer Than You Think

[...]

Coffee has proven to have a similar effect as gluten in quite a number of people. I, as well as many others here, do not drink it anymore because it simply is behaving and effecting us like gluten does. I would leave it out for now and see if you are one of those people.

Avocados as many other plant based food sources (many veggies included) don't seem to go well with a high meat/fat diet.

I would recommend this thread , about the diet issues to get a better understanding of it and how it works.
You can also follow and read articles on the Health & Wellness section of SOTT to get a better understanding of it. Also you can look at some of the SOTT Focus articles that go into more detail about these issues...