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147426 tn?1317265632

Smking and MS

I hate to bring this up, but I have a bounty of studies to back it up.

Smokers are more likely than non-smokers to develop MS, given the same genetic susceptiblities and triggers.  This has been the clear result in multiple studies.  I don't think it is a huge increase in risk, but it is a higher risk.

Smoking has a measurable, though not large, effect on worsening MS.  In a large study looking at 1000+ RRMS patients in the UK it was shown that over a 4 year period, the MSers who smoked moved into Secondary Progressive MS several months earlier than the non-smokers.

So, RAY, the smoking thing is not a myth, and I will search out the references some time for those of you who want them.  I am not haranging on anyone.  The only time I get livid is in exposing others to the smoke, especially children.  I WAS a pedipod (with ashtma) you all know.

Smiling, ducking from the rocks and stuff being aimed my way.  I didn't make this up, I swear!

q (peeking out)  someone tell me when it's safe..
15 Responses
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338416 tn?1420045702
What worked for me was wanting to quit.  It helped that I had been smoking ultra-lite cigarettes for almost a year before quitting.  I just woke up one day and decided I was done with smoking.  It got hard when I'd have a couple of beers, so my rule became "Don't inhale."  I would smoke those little mini-cigars if I really had to have something.
Helpful - 0
382218 tn?1341181487
Another reason to quit, non-MS related.

My mother was diagnosed recently with an abdominal aortic aneursym.  This is far less common in women than in men.  However she had other risk factors: overweight, over age 55, a history of heart disease in her family, and a 40+ year history of SMOKING.

Smoking is the most influential of all risk factors for AAA.  The number of cigarettes and years smoked, and an increased depth of inhalation, signficantly impacts AAA prevalence and risk of rupture.

She was typically asymptomatic, and the aneurysym was discovered incidentally during investigation for something else, not sure what.  I think was detected by ultrasound.  Now all they do is monitor to determine if it's growing.  If it gets to a certain size, surgery is done to prevent the possibility of rupture.  The surgery is very risky, though the likely outcome of rupture, far worse.

To complicate things, she also has an autoimmune disease, ITP, which is a blood disorder.  I'm not aware of any association with that and smoking, all I do know is smoking isn't good for anything (except tobacco company profits).

Good luck to all of you making the decision to quit.  You CAN do it and there are tons of reasons to do so, and no good reasons not to.


db
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Gotta throw in my opinion;  I quit three years ago, but the med that helped me was wellbutrin.  This is an antidepresant but has an unintended side effect of reducing smoking desire.  Without trying to quit I went from one pack to about ten cigarettes a day.  Zyban is another med that works the same way, and I don't think either of these have issues like the Chantix.

I chewed (and still chew) the nicotine gum.  I also used a wee bit of xanex when my mind was nuts (through the first month or so).  Jogged up and down my hallway, or chugged water when the urge seemed unbearable.  

It can be done.  I will pray for each and everyone of you.  God bless you, Amy

Helpful - 0
495035 tn?1221753092
wow what a coincidence ,today before i logged on i went to the store and got some nico gum! the doc told me i gotta give up so im poised and ready, wish me luck all( I just had a smoke while reading the packet lol)so at 12.00 bst I will give the smoking because i want to stay as well as i can for as long as i can :) have a great day all, and please support me :)
Helpful - 0
334876 tn?1229979296
  I guess I'm in really in double the trouble, as I still smoke and have been around chemacals painting cars for a living for most of my life, as the toxins in the paint put me out of work and would end up in the ER everytime I was around them, even the smell of perfume would kick it in high gear for me as well as other smells

  Cowboy
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I tried the Chantix several months ago. The only side effect I had was nightmares. It worked extremely well, I didn't even craves cigs. UNTIL I quit taking it too early. Back to smoking 2 packs a day. New target date to quit is July 1....I have to have sinus surgery Aug 16th, and have to quit smoking 6 weeks before. I only took the Chantix for 2 months, you can take it for up to 1 year. But my insurance won't pay for it, and it is for me anyway very expensive. $135. a month. I buy my cigs on a rez, so much cheaper than the Chantix!! Isn't it amazing how many excuses the mind can come up with! LOL. Now I have to do the whole thing over again. But I know it is worth it. Congrats Rena and Bio.                 Maggie
Helpful - 0
335728 tn?1331414412
I also used the Nicoderm Patch and it worked well because I wanted to quit.  There is a side effect of nightmares but they will pass as you get used to the patch.  I only used the 2nd and 3rd step because the 1st one was too strong and gave me major headaches.  My hubby's insurance covered these patches and my dr. gave me an Rx for them as she said she would rather see me on the patch than smoking two packs a day so I was on the patch for about 4 months and then I just stopped using them after weaning to the weakest patch for about 2 weeks.  You will find that even if you are not covered by insurance, the patch is cheaper than buying smokes!

I have saved $6020.00, not smoked for 301 days and not smoked 10,567 cigarettes!  I also had the back up of the Canadian Cancer Society Chat room and it did help if the going got tough and I won't kid you...I did have my moments.

I wish you luck with quitting Santana and anyone else that has this epic journey in mind!  It is hard...very hard but IT IS SOOOOO WORTH IT!!!

I am available if you need some support, a shoulder or a kick in the pants...whatever works for you, I am behind you 100%!

Lots of Hugs,

Rena
Helpful - 0
429949 tn?1224691579
Funny that this came up now, because I am struggleing with this very thing right now! I have smoked for 10 years, I didn't start until I was 28, I know, how stupid!!!!  But I seriously want to quit!! I have tried the suckers and sweet tart to try to replace the smoking, but all I got from that was sick on all of the sugar. I thought about Chantix, but read a bad report on it right after my PCP wrote me the percription. I know every medicine has side effects, but since this whole attack started 6 weeks after a medication change two years ago, I am a little gun shy!!!!

Anyway, what works?? Does the five min rule really work? I stopped buying cartons of them and am only buying one pack at a time to try to make it more trouble to get them, since I cannot drive, but this is not working at all!

I am beginning to think that the only way is to not have any around me whatsoever and just suffer through it the hard way. Anyone know how long the hard way takes?? HELP, FAST!!

Santana
Helpful - 0
378497 tn?1232143585
Congrats on you quitters. I know how hard it is. Just keep doing it, one day at a time. It does get easier and easier. I don't even want it at all any more.

Bio
(Ex-smoker, quit August 2000 after a decade+ of a pack+-a-day habit)
Helpful - 0
335728 tn?1331414412
YOU TOOT YOUR OWN HORN ALL THE WAY TO THE BANK HONEY!!!

I quit myself...it will be 1 year on July 17th and I smoked for about 33 years!  I don't miss it much but there are still a few triggers...I just stick to what got me through in the first place and I will swear by it...the 5 minute rule!  Wait 5 minutes and the craving will disappear and it really does work it you want to quit and you have to want to or it won't work.

As far as my smoking and ms...no doctor ever advised me to quit because of any relationship between smoking and ms but that doesn't mean they shouldn't have right?

I think Quix is offering us all a valuable piece of information that all should take into account.  Thanks Quix!

Rena
Helpful - 0
428506 tn?1296557399
Hi All,
This is a perfect chance for me to toot my own horn-
This past Saturday, I made it to 1month without smoking, cold turkey (after 15+ years).

So what got me to quit?  Like lots of people out there, I am a limbo-er.  [Boring details on my profile ;-)]

Of course there are tons of reasons to quit, but when I saw my neuro this Monday, I found another reason:  He took my concerns about my health much more seriously.  So he is listening to me, and I am taking some control over my health.  Both of these conditions are making me feel a lot better.

Not that I ever wanted to have all these mysterious problems, but my silver lining is that I am really trying to take better care of myself.  My concern seems to be picking up the slack that my will power sometimes leaves...  I've also made a lot of changes in my diet.

So, good luck to all those who are trying to quit or cut down, and thank you Quix for letting us know about this danger of smoking.



Helpful - 0
405614 tn?1329144114
I'm an ex-smoker.  You mean, if I hadn't quit 10 years ago, I'd feel even worse?  Ewww!  

I wish it was easier to quit; I know it reduces all sorts of health risks if you're able to quit.

But, heck, I couldn't give up chocolate, so who am I to say anything?  :o)

Kathy
Helpful - 0
147426 tn?1317265632
While I don't know for certain, I would suspect that it is the diffuse tissue damage that the carbon monoxide and other toxins cause throughout the body.  It would make sense that the brain, being slightly and microscopically damaged by smoking would not "hold off" whatever it is that finally triggers MS.  Smoking makes almost all cancers more prevalent, it is definitely hard on the arteries and heart.  All pulmonary disorders are worsened by it.   I wonder if autoimmune phenomena are more frequent in smokers.

To say that smoking "caused" anyone's MS is a VAST oversimplification and a twisting of the info.  It may have played a role or made it show up a little earlier, but that is all anyone can say.

I would encourage anyone with neuro symptoms or with MS to quit smoking becasue of the (because is one of my typo words.  I'm really tired of correcting it.) data that it can worsen your status.

I agree about some words.  My favorite to get wrong is "fluorescent."   I have to remember that there is "no flour" in fluorescent lights, lol.

Quix
Helpful - 0
338416 tn?1420045702
I think it's safe to come out!  

That's something I hadn't heard of, but it certainly makes sense.  I wonder what causes the increased susceptibblahraraughggh...  argh.  susceptibility.  there.  (Sometimes it's a fight to get the letters to come out in the right order!)  Maybe smoking makes holes in the blood-brain barrier?

I've heard of neurologists telling their patients that cigarettes caused their MS - that's not true, is it?
Helpful - 0
281565 tn?1295982683
Being a smoker myself, I can say it is safe for you to come out Quix. haha

I found that link you had sent me a while back and will save you the time of having to look it up.

For anyone interested:

http://brain.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/awh471v1

Moki
Helpful - 0
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