Cigarette Smoking

[SallieSaysSo]

New here...just found the site. The thread about pot-smoking got me thinking about cigarette smoking.  Does the latter cause liver damage?  Does cigarette smoking reduce the liklihood of clearing the virus?

[Mordred]

First of all, I don't claim to know the answers to everything. And if there's a no smoking sign somewhere that I'm at I won't light a cigarette, so you wouldn't have to be bothered with asking me to put it out. Trust me; when i'm really sick the smell of smoke sends me running to the bathroom. I was merely commenting about how insane everyone seems to be becoming over cigarettes lately. I don't think I've ever run across a website with the hostility that you people seem to harbor. I have HepC just as the rest of you do. And I have friends going through tx. None of us seem to have turned bitter at the world. And we do take the fact that HepC is a serious disease. We just don't let it consume our thoughts about it 24 hours a day.

[Califia]

Mordred,  Mordred, fer hevvin's sake.... get an actual grip.  Do you know who posts here?   People such as myself who are dealing with life-threatening illness and are undergoing serious, unpleasant treatment,  who learn on a daily basis about self-discipline and self-restraint because our very lives depend on it.  And you?  You must be that hipster who stood next to me on the subway platform and lit up a hand-rolled cigarette and then got uppity when I asked you to put it out because I was on chemo & the smoke was making me sick.  I was on my first week of ribavirin and pegylated interferon and spent the rest of the long trip home intensely nauseous because of your willful misunderstanding of the "No Smoking" sign.  

So Mordred, why exactly are you here if you already have all the answers?

[Mordred]

I started smoking cigarettes when I was eight years old and have been smoking for 27 years. I seem to be just fine according to my last physical. I certainly don't believe in all of that second-hand smoke nonsense. Nothing but lies created by anti-smokers to justify their campaign to abolish smoking. I have no intention of quitting smoking.

[eztagger]

As a long-time smoker, except for a period of 4 years when I wanted a cigarette constantly, my opinion is thus:

There is more and more evidence that being obese causes as many, if not more, health problems for the average person.

I'm not saying smoking is good for one - it's not, obviously - but obesity is epidemic in the U.S. and the cause of all kinds of medical conditions necessitating the need for expensive and debilitating medications.

My belief is that my good eating habits, being physically active, and living an almost stress free life (I retired in 2003, and gave up men in 1999) would have allowed me to live into my 90's if I hadn't contracted this !#$%^&* HCV.

[Docsgold]

I do understand.  I've started and stopped many times, cold turkey, patches, gum, times lasting a year to 6 months at a stretch.  Starting these meds just made me not want them at all, no withdrawals.  Very strange and I hope it lasts. Other changes have been gradual dislike for coca-cola and steak (which I have always loved).  I find the food jags absolutely crazy.

[RiverGal]

I smoke.  I quit drinking, quit living on twinkies and other sweets, quit caffeine, altered my career to a less stressful and MUCH less finacially rewarding one, quit stressing on trivia, quit coloring my hair, quit dating while on tx...

Damn if I am ready to quit smoking at this point...I would KILL someone!  I do want to drop it, as it is my last vice; however, I am only human.  

~River

[mythoughts]

I've been smoke free for 4 days now. Cold turkey kick - no gum or patches. Smoked at least a pack per day for 15yrs. It's been easy as pie...so far. After stopping Heroin, this has been little more than one big yawn! And they say it's harder to quit smoking than Heroin - yah, right! I'll tell you though, I did it for my liver, as I was diagnosed 4mths ago. Went from 20 smokes a day to 5-8 as soon as I got my Hep B chronic & Hep C positive results. But as of 4 days ago, I'm a non-smoker. My hubby is 2 days into his cold turkey kick & he said the same thing - piece of cake. To think that we were concerned all this time......I wish I'd done it years ago.

[new-sojourn]

I had no idea so many people smoked cigarettes!  Doesn't the packs still have warnings-mild @ that?

Well , it just goes to show that people will disregard anything for their drug of choice.

Of corse its bad for you.  and of course you're liver has to process the addictive by products.  It says so right on the pack!

[Xenigma]

You said it well new-sojourn.
Of course it goes for anything you smoke.
Have a pain free day all...
enigma

[fsplink]

I also quit smoking when I started tx. I figured I was already suffering the meds, I might as well go for broke and really be miserable!LOL. Now, I'm really glad I did because my lungs stay full of gunk from the tx, I just can't imagine how bad it would be smoking too. That sounds kinda of dingy the way I put it but that's the way the old brain works or doesn't work now.

[Docsgold]

Being on this tx has caused me to quit smoking.  Started tx 5/21 and my last cigarette was 6/8.  After all the negative things I have experienced from these meds this is one positive.  Let's just hope it lasts.

[Califia]

Good article on cigs & HCV by Alan Franciscus in the Nov 2001 HCV Advocate newsletter.

[Califia]

Good article on cigs & HCV by Alan Franciscus in the Nov 2001 HCV Advocate newsletter.

[Tony-z]

Just my opinion.

There are dozens of chemicals that are inhaled and ingested into your blood stream, each one of these chemicals has to be broken down by the liver and kidneys. Then there is the stress on your immune system.

I smoked for 33 years and after I got the result of my biopsy it did not take a brain surgeon to figure out I needed to quit.
It has been 5 years now.

I agree with Chev, tx is not the time to quit.


               TonyZ

[cuteus]

I don't think they have bothered to study that one.

[kennedge]

nope...