Is there a doctor in the house...

[SaintMickey®]

Anyone have any thoughts, opinion  or empirical evidence that your cigar smoking (like many things a human can do) has a direct effect on their "health" when it comes to upper respiratory or sinus infections? 

[kuma]

Been smoking stoogies since 2010 / 11 and no problems mate.  I do make sure to brush the

old teeth after every cigar.  Keep a tooth brush / paste in company work car, my own car

and paste / brush at office when not in the field.  Never leave home without that stuff.

Every 6 months cleaning from the tooth doc.  Floss when I can.  Very important to

keep the mouth / teeth clean

[NSXCIGAR]

I am not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV, but any doctor is going to tell you not to do it, just like any doctor is going to tell you not to use any alcohol, ever.

As far as empirical evidence, aside from the FDA concluding that there's no statistically significant cancer risk for up to 2 cigars per day, the most current body of evidence suggests cigar smoke or passive smoke directly causes no health issues aside from exacerbating existing conditions like asthma and sinus problems.

And of course cigarettes and chewing tobacco continue to show high correlations to lung/mouth/throat cancers.

[SaintMickey®]

Not talking bad breath (got me a toothbrush Kuma! LOL) or cancer. I am specifically inquiring on respiratory or sinus.  I have some "knowledgable folk" in my life that say unequivocally that cigar smoke reeks short term havoc on respiratory health.

I've been smoking since 1996...I'm just looking for the forum's opinion/experiences. 

[Dozerhead]

Sometimes cigar smoke does exacerbate my seasonal allergies, but it's a cross I'm willing to bear. I just take a couple of benadryl afterwards. 

[PapaDisco]

All smoke is an irritant, so it wouldn't be surprising to find a correlation between second hand smoke and sinus issues.  Tasting smoke is much less of an issue than breathing smoke.

However, there's a remarkably wide range of disease incidence when it comes to the whole smoking thing, and (just guessing here) that wide dispersion might also apply to second hand smoke.   Today's society tends to treat all smoking as equally bad, but statistically that's not true at all.  Here's the thing: for cigarette smoking the Surgeon General's massive report found that two elements were key to mortality, starting early and smoking a lot.  Those smokers who started before the age of 15 and smoked 2 or more packs a day had 3X the mortality of a non-smoker; BUT (again this is cigarettes), the smoker who started at the age of 30 and smoked less than 1 pack a day had about the same mortality as a non-smoker . . . and this is "evil" cigarettes.

Cigar and pipe smokers had the same or better mortality than non-smokers if they smoked fewer than 5 cigars a day.

I don't recall the study addressing second hand smoke, but there might be a similar, very broad, dispersal of results.  Recall that in 1968 when the study was done, there was a whole helluva lot of smoking done in closed rooms, nowadays you have much better ventilation and a lot of time we're smoking out of doors, so there's little to no "second hand smoke" to mess with your sinuses.  That said, I'm sure we all notice the effects of a night of combined drinking/smoking on the nose and throat.  It's an irritant for sure, but getting an honest assessment of its negatives is difficult.

[dominattorney]

Dr Chuck here, reminding you to find what you love and let it kill you. No one is getting out of this thing alive in the end no matter what. 

[Porch Smoker]

Dr Chuck here, reminding you to find what you love and let it kill you. No one is getting out of this thing alive in the end no matter what. 

LMAO


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[NSXCIGAR]

2 hours ago, PapaDisco said:

I don't recall the study addressing second hand smoke, but there might be a similar, very broad, dispersal of results.  Recall that in 1968 when the study was done, there was a whole helluva lot of smoking done in closed rooms, nowadays you have much better ventilation and a lot of time we're smoking out of doors, so there's little to no "second hand smoke" to mess with your sinuses.  That said, I'm sure we all notice the effects of a night of combined drinking/smoking on the nose and throat.  It's an irritant for sure, but getting an honest assessment of its negatives is difficult.

Regarding passive smoke, yes, it's true, almost all of the research in this area (i.e. all the research the FDA, SG, WHO etc. based their opinions on for decades) was determined to be highly questionable and incomplete. The most comprehensive and accurate study which was published a few years ago showed no statistically significant causal relationship between passive smoke and any disease, but did show that it can exacerbate existing respiratory and sinus issues, which IMO was fairly obvious to just about anyone anyway.

[awkwardPause]

Anecdotally, I usually avoid smoking when I have an upper resp. infection or obnoxious seasonal allergies as it just isn't pleasant to smoke at that point, IMO. I view smoke (from cigars) as a mild irritant, generally-speaking. For what it's worth, nasal steroid sprays like fluticasone (now sold OTC) work great for congestion/allergies if that's an issue and really clears me up during those damn allergy seasons...but it has to be used consistently for effect. Pseudoephedrine and diphenhydramine (Benadryl) are also indispensable in the arsenal to get you back in tip-top smoking shape when colds/allergies got you down

 

[Ken Gargett]

just had the flu and no had desire to smoke. would have near killed me.

obviously it is not a positive thing but just how bad, i'm sure you can get the full gamut of opinions.

i have a bunch of doctors in the family, working in everything from research to a former president of the AMA. both aunt and uncle are doctors and they gave me some cigars a while back so i doubt they are too concerned. they know i do not and never have smoked a cigarette.

they actually (very long story re clots from flying and i'll spare you) referred me to a sort of specialist GP quite a while back who looked after every little bit of me for best part of a decade but is now retired. very sad.

this guy was the doctor to a great many of the doctors in brizzy, so was held in the highest regard.

never forget our first appointment. incredibly thorough.

went through the whole history and at one stage, asked if i took any vitamins or pills etc etc. i think back then a little vit B and milk thistle and fish oil pills was about it (he put me on a cholesterol pill a day as it was that or completely change my lifestyle - oh how we both laughed at that thought - which, in just 6 weeks, took my cholesterol down from way too high no matter what i did to low to normal and it has never moved from there). told me to dump all those pills and things into the bin and in future, spend the money i saved on higher quality red wine.

we discussed the cigars. i don't have that many in any event. he asked if i enjoyed the occasional cigar. told him i did very much did. he looked at me and said well, under no circumstances should you ever give it up.

christ, i miss him.

[JohnS]

4 hours ago, dominattorney said:

Dr Chuck here, reminding you to find what you love and let it kill you. No one is getting out of this thing alive in the end no matter what. 

And I thought you were an attorney! So convenient to know you are a jack-of-all-trades! 

[Fuzz]

My doctor has no problems with my smoking cigars. Even gave him an Alex custom after my Cuba trip. He was very excited to try it.

[SaintMickey®]

Thanks for replies.

I've had some bad luck, back to back to back sinus respiratory things over the last 2+ months. All of which I contribute to  travel and airplanes.  I posted a couple months about antibiotics and such messing with my taste months ago...

I have some PITA "friends" that believe Cigars are the root cause of everything from global warming to US immigration policies and I was just wondering everyone's experience. Nothing more than that....

Hoping by this weekend I will be able to enjoy.  

[Fugu]

3 hours ago, Fuzz said:

My doctor has no problems with my smoking cigars. Even gave him an Alex custom after my Cuba trip. He was very excited to try it.

Yep, most docs (physicians) I know are even heavy cigarette smokers. My dentist is smoking cigars and is a connoisseur.

 

2 minutes ago, SaintMickey® said:

everything from global warming

Can confirm on global warming....

Smoking aids me in keeping up my mental health and simply sets me in a good mood. Certainly more pros than cons health-wise (for me!). Enjoy my smoking and will happily let them do all their studies... I am convinced that, all in all, my cigar smoking is beneficial to me. Otherwise, I wouldn't do it.

And no - not noticed any effects on sinus infections or the like. I simply can't smoke with a cold, but smoking has never been the cause of it, let alone any chronic effects (but once you got it - and you were even in need of taking antiBs, Mickey, it certainly is wiser to stop smoking for the time being).

[...]

33 minutes ago, SaintMickey® said:

 

I have some PITA "friends" that believe Cigars are the root cause of everything from global warming to US immigration policies

I suggest you get new friends. Life's too short to settle for mediocrity ?

[Squarehead]

My doctor is a cigarsmoker,as for myself I don't and can't smoke if I have a cold.There's no joy and taste in doing so just a waste of money

[wabashcr]

Both nicotine and second-hand smoke can have repressive effects on the immune system, which could lead one to be more susceptible to sinus or respiratory infections.  But those studies are mostly limited to cigarette smoking, so it's reasonable to suspect that the effects of moderate cigar smoking would be negligible.  

I'm not a doctor.  The only doctor I can think of on here who has weighed in on these issues before is @Ribeye. Perhaps he can shed some light here.

[SaintMickey®]

6 hours ago, Jeanff said:

I suggest you get new friends. Life's too short to settle for mediocrity ?

I assure you people that are worrying global warming and immigration are not my good friends   ?.  Just as those who give me advice  regarding mediocrity on web forms!?

[SaintMickey®]

17 minutes ago, wabashcr said:

Both nicotine and second-hand smoke can have repressive effects on the immune system, which could lead one to be more susceptible to sinus or respiratory infections.  But those studies are mostly limited to cigarette smoking, so it's reasonable to suspect that the effects of moderate cigar smoking would be negligible.  

I'm not a doctor.  The only doctor I can think of on here who has weighed in on these issues before is @Ribeye. Perhaps he can shed some light here.

Agree. 

[beparrish]

I came down with a sinus infection twice several years ago directly after attending an inside cigar event where there was little to no ventilation.

Since then, whenever I attend such an event, I use my Neti Pot as soon as I get home to flush any irritants from my sinuses. Don't know if it's that or good luck, but I haven't had a sinus infection since.

[TBird55]

I was diagnosed with kidney cancer last November.  After successful surgery,  I was talking with my surgeon about any lifestyle changes I might needed to do. Told  him about my love of cigars, and asked  if I needed to stop.  He said they shouldn't have any adverse affect to my health. Come to find out that he enjoyed Cuban cigars himself, but hadn't had any for several years. I went home and dug out an old desk top humidor, seasoned it, and made him a sampler of 20 cc's.On the next appointment I presented it to him,  the look on his face was like a kid at Christmas.

[Ribeye]

First and foremost, let us not delude ourselves into thinking that there is not a price to pay in any of our actions.  Someone once said "everything in moderation", and I believe that is the key.  Do we harm our respiratory system and sinuses with smoke? Absolutely. Do we derive enjoyment and relaxation from cigars? Absolutely. 

The fact is there are hundreds of toxic substances in smoke that have been identified, and maybe just as many that haven't yet been discovered.  So many metabolites and chemical compounds, it staggers the imagination. One would go crazy to be in constant worry.

As to direct harm... Our respiratory systems are lined with ciliated cells. In other words cells that have small hair like projections that beat a constant motion to keep offending particulate matter, chemicals, metabolites and other substances out.  The aggregate of these are the Phlegm/mucous secreted.

 Smoking causes the cilia to become somewhat paralyzed and/or reduces the ability to clear toxicants.

Simply speaking, less ability to move toxicants causes more phlegm build up which leads to sinusitis, and increased infections of the sinuses and lungs.  Fortunately, the cilia can rebound quickly in most cases. 

None of us will get out of this life without death.  For me, the enjoyment, social nature and camaraderie I derive from moderate cigar smoking outweighs the gloom and doom.  Not to mention, that any of us could step off a curb tomorrow and be clocked instantly. Enjoy your lives and families each day!

[SaintMickey®]

20 minutes ago, Ribeye said:

As to direct harm... Our respiratory systems are lined with ciliated cells. In other words cells that have small hair like projections that beat a constant motion to keep offending particulate matter, chemicals, metabolites and other substances out.  The aggregate of these are the Phlegm/mucous secreted.

 Smoking causes the cilia to become somewhat paralyzed and/or reduces the ability to clear toxicants.

Simply speaking, less ability to move toxicants causes more phlegm build up which leads to sinusitis, and increased infections of the sinuses and lungs.

Interesting...thanks for the reply. This was similar to what I was being told by some...

It will not detract me from camaraderie nor will I be paralyzed with gloom and doom...

[cigcars]

        * I'm no doctor...although my own physician is always getting in my stuff about my constant attempts at "advice" "suggestions", etc. He goes, "Are you practicing without a license again? You know you'll go to jail that way!"  Even so, I know what you all are talking about as far as this "bug" that seems to be going around - everybody's caught it over here and in the neighboring state.  As far as smoking my beloved seegars at this juncture, there is just no desire (or energy) for it in this condition. Plus, can't enjoy it anyway, what with sense of smell, etc. being affected. But as far as being a possible "danger" or some such to the membranes, I for my untrained, pedestrian view, find no real medical difficulties caused by our only sun and shade grown natural tobacco - non-chemicalled like cigarettes- very relaxing and enjoyable naturally aged plant. My 2 cts.