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Last post 7 years ago by darr1964. 41 replies replies.
For those who have successfully quit smoking cigarettes.
Homebrew Offline
#1 Posted:
Joined: 02-11-2003
Posts: 11,883
Just wondering? How long did you abstain before having a cigar. I quit smoking cigarettes back in August. I have also abstained from cigars, to make sure I didn't turn my hobby into an addiction. How long should I abstain, to insure that it will not cause a problem?

Dave (A.K.A. Homebrew)Beer
danmdevries Offline
#2 Posted:
Joined: 02-11-2014
Posts: 17,124
Was about 4 years for me.

Took at least 6 months to a year for cigarette triggers/cravings to go away. Maybe longer, don't really remember.

Did find myself smoking almost every day though, but I chalk that up to it being new and exploring different stuff. Now that I've settled into just smoking what I like, it's about once a week or so
bassman45 Offline
#3 Posted:
Joined: 07-05-2009
Posts: 4,082
First of all,good luck and congratulations on quitting cigarettes!I probably went about 6 months before I had a cigar after quitting cigarettes for the last time. Give them up and if you crave nicotine have a cigar instead,worked for me since 1985.Herfing
teedubbya Offline
#4 Posted:
Joined: 08-14-2003
Posts: 95,637
I quit cigarettes around 25 years ago. Smoked cigars all along. I only have a cigar every few months now. Back then I was having one or two a day.

Good luck quitting cigs. Took me several tries but am so glad I did.
dharbolt Offline
#5 Posted:
Joined: 08-03-2013
Posts: 6,931
Good on you. I quit about 5 years ago. Only smoked about a cigar a week then, only waited a couple weeks before I had another.
tonygraz Offline
#6 Posted:
Joined: 08-11-2008
Posts: 20,175
When I quit cigarettes, I almost immediately went from them to a pipe and cigars. Took many years and many tries before that and my best try was around 6 months, most were a week or less.
DrafterX Offline
#7 Posted:
Joined: 10-18-2005
Posts: 98,508
I still smoke them.. Sad


only on da weekends after a couple beers tho... normally fit a cigar or two in also... I prolly should give up the ciggs.. I don't crave them during the week or ever really.. just a habit I guess... Mellow
bgz Offline
#8 Posted:
Joined: 07-29-2014
Posts: 13,023
I had a battle with cigs, I come from a long line of nicotine junkies.

Quit cold turkey once for a year, gained like 60 lbs.

Started smoking cigars then, probably about 10 years ago or so. Then started cigs again, quit again a few time all the while still smoking cigars here and there.

Then ecigs came out, ecigs are the only thing on the planet that really worked for me.

I mix my own juice to save cash (rather buy cigars), I started at 18 mg/ml nicotine, now I'm down to 2 mg/ml (only way to get that is to mix it yourself).

I might drop down to zero, as what I vape now might as well be zero nic, but there's the mental aspect of it, lol.

Been vaping now for about 4 years or so, haven't had a cig in about the same amount of time.

Anyway, if you're jonesing, get an ecig (get a good one though, the cheap ones are crap).
bgz Offline
#9 Posted:
Joined: 07-29-2014
Posts: 13,023
If you want, I can put together a shopping list for you. Probably be around $150 or so for a good setup.
Homebrew Offline
#10 Posted:
Joined: 02-11-2003
Posts: 11,883
bgz wrote:
If you want, I can put together a shopping list for you. Probably be around $150 or so for a good setup.

That is alright. I tried vaping, about a year ago. It helped, but only a little bit. I have been off cigarettes, since the 16th of August. I had my first cigar, since I quit, this morning at the casino. Was a little worried, that the urge for a cigarette would be too strong, since I always smoked when I played black jack. Had one stick LFdC Preferidos from 1997. Plyed about 7 hours, never wanted another or a cigarette. So far so good.

Dave (A.K.A. Homebrew)Beer
MACS Offline
#11 Posted:
Joined: 02-26-2004
Posts: 79,593
teedubbya wrote:
I quit cigarettes around 25 years ago. Smoked cigars all along. I only have a cigar every few months now. Back then I was having one or two a day.

Good luck quitting cigs. Took me several tries but am so glad I did.


I quit cigarettes about 25 years ago, as well. I smoked for about 8 years, 15 to 23-ish. I woke up one day and could barely breathe, and I was in my early 20's. That was my wake up call. I quit cold turkey, right there. Threw away half a pack and never smoked again.

Didn't bother with cigars until maybe 10 years later.
Pudding Mittens Offline
#12 Posted:
Joined: 08-15-2016
Posts: 1,291
.
Be aware that studies have shown that former cigarette smokers nearly always inhale some portion of a cigar's smoke, even when trying their best not to do so. It apparently happens automatically at a reflexive/subconscious level, and is nearly impossible to prevent.

So cigars are potentially much more harmful to former cigarette smokers than they are to smokers who have never smoked cigarettes, who inhale basically zero cigar smoke because even a tiny bit makes it feel like their lungs are full of burning napalm, which is super-strong incentive to never, ever inhale any of it.

Just something to keep in mind.
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tamapatom Offline
#13 Posted:
Joined: 03-19-2015
Posts: 7,381
I smoked cigarettes and other things in High School and quit before it became a habit. Picked up on cigars 20 years later. I have smoked cigars off and on for the next 20 years, averaging maybe one or two a month until recently. Have ramped up my cigar smoking in the last few years as part of wanting to learn more about different cigars, maybe 3-4 per week average.......would like to cut back some and settle down to average of one a week. Easy to do unless faced with a new cigar I want to try.

For those having a hard time not inhaling, a friend of mine came up with a little trick (to keep from choking on a cigar). Fill your lungs with air before drawing on your cigar so there is no free space there. Not a good long term solution to enjoying cigars IMO but if it helps to get you in the mode of not inhaling then maybe it is a good idea.
cameroon Offline
#14 Posted:
Joined: 04-06-2014
Posts: 810
Because I have testicles, I did not let quitting cigarettes interfere with my cigars
Buckwheat Offline
#15 Posted:
Joined: 04-15-2004
Posts: 12,251
I quite Cold Turkey in '86 after about 21 years of smoking cigs. Quit cigars late in 2009 because I got sick.

You could also use the Sick Boy Method. Sarcasm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2B7w4Z3uOI

bgz Offline
#16 Posted:
Joined: 07-29-2014
Posts: 13,023
I kind of use that method Tom, I don't fill my lungs up completely, but I do take a breath before I take a puff.

Admittedly, I do accidentally inhale from time to time, but it's so infrequent now that I feel it, and it's an unpleasant feeling when it happens, so I try to avoid it.
cacman Offline
#17 Posted:
Joined: 07-03-2010
Posts: 12,216
Quit cigarettes and rolling my own over 6yrs ago. Got tired of coughing all the time. Started smoking cigars the very next day. But I only smoke when I drink.

Just say NO to the vape! That crap is worse for you than smoking an actual cigarette!
namadio Offline
#18 Posted:
Joined: 11-24-2014
Posts: 1,621
danmdevries wrote:
Did find myself smoking almost every day though, but I chalk that up to it being new and exploring different stuff. Now that I've settled into just smoking what I like, it's about once a week or so


I still crave cigarettes every day, independent of my cigar usage. Otherwise, this ^.
Transplant Offline
#19 Posted:
Joined: 09-22-2016
Posts: 37
Smoked cigarettes for 40 years. Quit in 2012. Didn't start on cigars until 2014, but they've quickly become a passion...so much more fun than cigarettes.
tonygraz Offline
#20 Posted:
Joined: 08-11-2008
Posts: 20,175
People are different and the way they are after cigarettes are very different. Some people will say that if they found out they were going to die soon they would start smoking again. I have no desire to ever smoke another cigarette. Smoking cigarettes is a habit and an addiction. I don't inhale cigar or pipe smoke and never could smoke anything in a vehicle withou a window open.
cacman Offline
#21 Posted:
Joined: 07-03-2010
Posts: 12,216
tonygraz wrote:
never could smoke anything in a vehicle withou a window open.

No Cheech 'n Chong moments for you??? Such a sheltered life it's a shame.
bgz Offline
#22 Posted:
Joined: 07-29-2014
Posts: 13,023
cacman wrote:
Quit cigarettes and rolling my own over 6yrs ago. Got tired of coughing all the time. Started smoking cigars the very next day. But I only smoke when I drink.

Just say NO to the vape! That crap is worse for you than smoking an actual cigarette!


LOL, no... vape is not worse for you than cigarettes.

Buying into the BS they're spewing I see...

Do your own research, don't rely on the media and the FDA for your information.

I mix my own juice too, I know exactly what's in it.

cacman Offline
#23 Posted:
Joined: 07-03-2010
Posts: 12,216
bgz wrote:
LOL, no... vape is not worse for you than cigarettes.

Buying into the BS they're spewing I see...

Do your own research, don't rely on the media and the FDA for your information.

I mix my own juice too, I know exactly what's in it.

Vegetable and propylene glycol are not natural products. It doesn't grow from the ground. Neither where they intended to be inhaled, especially propylene glycol. You might as well inhale from a smoke machine. I've done all the research, and have not found vape to be a healthier alternative, even with MMJ

Just one of many articles:
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/e-cigarettes-vaping-no-better-than-smoking-regular-cigarettes-a6790266.html
dstieger Offline
#24 Posted:
Joined: 06-22-2007
Posts: 10,889
What does all that research suggest is the risk from the propylene glycol? Poison hemlock grows from the ground, but I probably wouldn't be willing to ingest it.
Pudding Mittens Offline
#25 Posted:
Joined: 08-15-2016
Posts: 1,291
cacman wrote:
Vegetable and propylene glycol [were not intended to be] inhaled, especially propylene glycol. You might as well inhale from a smoke machine.


Yes, that's my take on it, too. Nobody has ANY IDEA what vaporizing and inhaling VG and PG will do to human lungs or the rest of the human body over the long term.

Nobody will know for about 20-30 more years.

So saying TODAY that it's "safe" or even "safer" is pure speculation. It might have horrifying long-term effects. Vapers are gambling.
.
teedubbya Offline
#26 Posted:
Joined: 08-14-2003
Posts: 95,637
Cigarettes, vape, and cigars are all bad for you. Pick your poison and enjoy life but don't pretend.
cacman Offline
#27 Posted:
Joined: 07-03-2010
Posts: 12,216
dstieger wrote:
What does all that research suggest is the risk from the propylene glycol? Poison hemlock grows from the ground, but I probably wouldn't be willing to ingest it.

https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/substances/toxsubstance.asp?toxid=240

Believing Vape is a safe alternative would be like believing the cigarette companies when they said "light" and "low-tar" cigarettes where safer alternatives. I'm with TW.
dstieger Offline
#28 Posted:
Joined: 06-22-2007
Posts: 10,889
I'm aware of what it is. Nothing in there confirms your suggestion that vape liquid with PG is as bad for you as cigarettes.

I agree that it would be foolish to use PG products and assume they are risk-free. However, I don't think it is a stupid proposition to trade a known high-risk product such as cigarettes for a potentially risky product.

Note that I have never smoked cigarettes, nor ever tried a vape, so I'm not personally attached to either argument.
cacman Offline
#29 Posted:
Joined: 07-03-2010
Posts: 12,216
dstieger wrote:
I'm aware of what it is. Nothing in there confirms your suggestion that vape liquid with PG is as bad for you as cigarettes.

I wouldn't want to smoke the same stuff that's used to cool the beer lines at the local bar.
Somehow I don't think that can be better for than just firing up some leaf.
bgz Offline
#30 Posted:
Joined: 07-29-2014
Posts: 13,023
PG is not a carcinogen, and it's in use in every day products you use all the time.

You eat it, you inhale it, you rub it on your skin on a regular basis without even knowing it.

VG is also widely use and is known to become toxic when heated to high temperatures (vapes don't get that hot).

Are they good for you? No, but by themselves, they are not bad for you.

The big unknown with e-cigs is what is in the flavorings, but they are certainly not as bad for you as tobacco smoke.

Their big thing now is saying e-cigs can cause popcorn lung due to diacetyl in some flavorings.

What they don't tell you, is that you get way way more of the crap when you smoke cigarettes (or cigars for that matter) and the amount that you take in from an ecig is negligible.

Anyway, no... ecigs are no way as bad for you as cigarettes (or cigars for that matter), and it's not even close.
Pudding Mittens Offline
#31 Posted:
Joined: 08-15-2016
Posts: 1,291
.
From cacman's link:

Quote:
The study [...] showed that vapour from e-cigarettes can damage or kill human cells [...]

"Vapourised e-cig liquids induce increased DNA strand breaks and cell death.”

"we were able to at least identify that e-cigarettes on the whole have something to do with increased cell death"

Further research is now needed to determine the long-term effects of vaping, as well as whether the DNA damage will lead to mutations that result in cancer.


bgz said above:

Quote:
ecigs are no way as bad for you as cigarettes (or cigars for that matter), and it's not even close.

For cigarettes, probably correct but we don't know yet. Cigars are a different matter.

Mild-to-moderate use of non-inhaled cigars: very long history and large database showing no significant increased risk of any disease.

Vaping: ?????????. Brand new. Nobody has vaporized and inhaled VG/PG regularly on a large scale before in human history, as far as I've heard. No history, nonexistent database, almost a complete unknown, but see above for initial potentially bad findings.

Saying that vaping is safer than cigars and it's "not even close" is completely unsupported at present, and is quite likely to be wrong. But, we won't know for decades.
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bgz Offline
#32 Posted:
Joined: 07-29-2014
Posts: 13,023
Pudding Mittens wrote:
.
From cacman's link:



bgz said above:


For cigarettes, probably correct but we don't know yet. Cigars are a different matter.

Mild-to-moderate use of non-inhaled cigars: very long history and large database showing no significant increased risk of any disease.

Vaping: ?????????. Brand new. Nobody has vaporized and inhaled VG/PG regularly on a large scale before in human history, as far as I've heard. No history, nonexistent database, almost a complete unknown, but see above for initial potentially bad findings.

Saying that vaping is safer than cigars and it's "not even close" is completely unsupported at present, and is quite likely to be wrong. But, we won't know for decades.
.


LOL, thanks "Know it All" for chiming in.

You do realize that researchers have been studying the the effects of PG and VG for decades right?

You say large scale... but we're talking 10 to 25 mg per day in liquid form where the actual absorption amount is significantly lower than that.

PG has actually used in many pharma products that are meant to be delivered by inhalation including asthma inhalers for years.

So, to say that nobody knows is a bit naive seeing how they have been used in real world products for many, many years.

I say not even close because it is entirely supported by real world data, but more importantly is supported by common sense.

There is no combustion when using ecigs where there is is combustion in cigarettes and cigars. Any time you burn something, that something (what ever it is), is going to release huge amounts of chemicals that are known carcinogens.

So... go do more research, because scientists already have, you obviously just haven't found it.
teedubbya Offline
#33 Posted:
Joined: 08-14-2003
Posts: 95,637
Cigarettes at one time were considered good for you. Athletes were encouraged to smoke to increase lung capacity and function.

Vape if you like but my guess is it's pretty harmful even if you choose to ignore the FDA.
Pudding Mittens Offline
#34 Posted:
Joined: 08-15-2016
Posts: 1,291
bgz wrote:
LOL, thanks "Know it All" for chiming in.


I'm not the one sounding like that, here.

Quote:
You do realize that researchers have been studying the the effects of PG and VG for decades right?


Run through a hot coil and into the lungs?

Quote:
PG has actually used in many pharma products that are meant to be delivered by inhalation including asthma inhalers for years.


So asthma inhalers run it over a hot coil before inhaling occurs? I don't thnk so, nope.

Quote:
So, to say that nobody knows is a bit naive seeing how they have been used in real world products for many, many years.


Asbestos was used in real-world products for many, many years. Then they found out what happens when you routinely inhale small particles of it for a long time. Oops! The "used in real-world products for many, many years" data only counts if it's THE SAME KIND of usage.

Quote:
I say not even close because it is entirely supported by real world data, but more importantly is supported by common sense.


"Common sense" is NOT comparing one mode of use to a completely different, new mode of use that has no track record or data at all.

Quote:
There is no combustion when using ecigs


We're not talking about combustion. We're talking about running VG/PG over a vaporizer coil and inhaling it, something that, to my knowledge, has never been done on any significant scale before the very, very recent ecig trend.

Quote:
So... go do more research, because scientists already have, you obviously just haven't found it.


Go do research that compares apples to apples, not to oranges. You obviously haven't found it yet... but that's because it doesn't EXIST yet.

As I said, we won't know for decades.
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bgz Offline
#35 Posted:
Joined: 07-29-2014
Posts: 13,023
teedubbya wrote:
Cigarettes at one time were considered good for you. Athletes were encouraged to smoke to increase lung capacity and function.

Vape if you like but my guess is it's pretty harmful even if you choose to ignore the FDA.


You mean the part about propylene glycol being classified as generally safe?

Or the part about PG being safe to consume as a carbohydrate substitute for up to 5 percent of your daily calorie intake?

Or the fact that it's been used in medicinal drug delivery systems in vapor form for decades?

Which part are you referring?

The FDA wants to regulate ecigs for the revenue (and loss thereof due to people switching from cigs), not because it's dangerous.

bgz Offline
#36 Posted:
Joined: 07-29-2014
Posts: 13,023
Pudding, heating something up is not equivalent to burning it.

Pudding Mittens Offline
#37 Posted:
Joined: 08-15-2016
Posts: 1,291
bgz wrote:
Pudding, heating something up is not equivalent to burning it.


I never said it was. In fact I specifically said: "We're not talking about combustion. We're talking about running VG/PG over a vaporizer coil and inhaling it." (see above)

Again, I am unaware of any widespread prior usage of VG/PG in the way that ecigs use it: by passing it over a hot coil and turning it into vapor to be inhaled.

That mode of use is fundamentally different from eating it, burning it or inhaling it at room-temperature (e.g. asthma inhalers). So, datasets about the safety of those modes of use aren't transferrable to ecigs.

There is no long-term dataset about the safety of PG/VG in the way that ecigs use and deliver it. That was my point. In other words, we won't know for decades.
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bgz Offline
#38 Posted:
Joined: 07-29-2014
Posts: 13,023
Just thinking about this a little more, another part of the logic on Mittens' part is talking about products in the past that were determined to be safe and comparing it to ecigs.

Our ability now to directly observe and analyse the chemical byproducts from something is vastly superior to the technologies used back then.

We can actually determine precisely what is being generated, and for all byproducts from an ecig, the toxicity of the substances and whether or not they are carcinogenic are known.

I have yet to find a study from a reputable (non-conflict of interest) source that says any of the byproducts are above the threshold for the standards used for workplace safety.

The biggest concern seems to stem from propylene glycol breaking down to aldehydes when heated.

Opponents of ecigs will quote a high number because they flat out scorched the sh1t out of their coil by bumping obscene current to it.

Neutral studies on the other hand find far lower amounts (negligible amounts) under real world conditions where they are firing them like a normal user would.

In any case, formaldehyde tastes like sh1t, and if you burn your coil too hard or pump too much current to it, you will know instantly and turn it down... because that stuff's nasty.

In any case, you guys can argue with me about this all you want and bring up asbestos, lead in gasoline, tobacco itself as examples, but by doing so, you are falsely assuming that our technology in the 60's and 70's is on par with what we have today... it's not.

Like I said, the byproducts are known, the thresholds for said byproducts are known, and have been known for years. We're not dealing with anything new here, just a new form of delivery.

So yes, I stick by my assessment that ecigs are far safer than cigarettes and cigars... and no, it's not even close.

I'm done on this issue, all the information is out there, you can go look it up... or not, but if a cigarette smoker runs across this, and is deterred by your arguments and goes on to die from lung cancer, you had a hand in their death :)
Pudding Mittens Offline
#39 Posted:
Joined: 08-15-2016
Posts: 1,291
.
Yes, we have better technology now that can precisely identify all the substances produced.

The problem comes when you try to determine the long-term biological effects of inhaling that mixture of substances, when there is no relevant real-world dataset.

Only long-term observation and compiling real-world clinical outcome data can do that.
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cacman Offline
#40 Posted:
Joined: 07-03-2010
Posts: 12,216
We make a conscious effort to avoid products with PG. I don't believe in digesting, putting on my skin or hair, or inhaling antifreeze.

There is a vast difference between heating it for nicotine vape, and shaking it for use as treatment in a hospital.

I'd rather smoke natural leaf than a bunch of chemicals that where never intended to be inhaled.
darr1964 Offline
#41 Posted:
Joined: 11-09-2016
Posts: 1
I am a truck driver and was smoking 1 1/2 packs a day and about 1/2 a can of chew. I started smoking cigars about 2 months ago. My question is, keep in mind I'm in a truck 24/7, so is smoking 4 to 5 gars a day too much. I shop around for deals and on different sites I try to not spend as much on cigars as I was on cigs, and chew. I smoke my good cigars when I'm off for the night or when I'm home. I am down to about a pack of cigs and a can of chew a week.ram27bat
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