4 ms·

The bit about lung cancer and cigarette smoking being more relevant to their cause of death is very likely true - they will likely have had more radiation expos

The bit about lung cancer and cigarette smoking being more relevant to their cause of death is very likely true - they will likely have had more radiation exposure, never mind chemical, from smoking than from their entire nuclear careers. Cigarettes produce leave polonium and lead 210 in your lungs - which, while "only" an alpha emitter, being already inside your body has plenty of opportunity to do damage. Smoking a pack a day is about the equivalent of having a CT scan every day, due to the cumulative buildup of radioactive gunk in your lungs.

ams6110 11y ago
I assume these are naturally occuring in the tobacco, as I can't see any reason that polonium or lead would be added to cigarettes. Does marijuana smoke contain similar radioactive components?
- madaxe_again 11y ago
  Both from the soil and from phosphate fertilisers - see http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/5914751 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/5914751 . So yeah, weed probably does have similar components, but if there's one thing in its favour, weed is an expectorant - far less crap sticks around in your lungs than with tobacco.
- anonbanker 11y ago
  And more importantly, what about marijuana vapor?
deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
catshirt 11y ago
so sad how jarring this perspective is and yet i still can't stop...
- madaxe_again 11y ago
  Get yourself a vape... I was on 60 a day 3 months ago, got myself a kanga KBOX mini and haven't looked back - lovely thick clouds of fog, feels like smoking a pipe, hits the nicotine spot nicely. Still coughing up the black-lung, but it's getting better.
  - lholden 11y ago
    If your vape is making "thick clouds"... it's likely burning your tobacco and generating a lot more than just a vapor.
    - koube 11y ago
      It's vaporizing the nicotine, not burning. But I do agree that the pro-vape crowd gives vaping a lot more credit than is due. It's certainly not as harmless as they make it out to be. The Propylene Glycol and Vegetable Glycerine is probably harmless enough, but there's also burnt cotton or fiberglass, built up gunk, and none of the flavors are tested for inhalation. Nobody in the industry has any oversight. That being said, if someone is smoking, vaping is definitely a good idea. A good setup will make it much easier to stop smoking.
      - madaxe_again 11y ago
        Agreed on all points - I don't intend to vape long term, I've stepped down from 9mg to 6mg to 3mg nicotine oils over the last three months - and plan to drop the nicotine altogether in a few months, and then quit vaping sometime after. I'm effectively using it to decouple the physiological and psychological addictions so I can treat them independently of one another. Hell, it can't be worse than smoking - or for that matter taking a tube ride, or being in an underground car park... Or being in a place with fog machines - propylene glycol too. Also don't get burnt cotton with this sucker unless you run it totally dry - wick is always wet, and I run with a low wattage. Tried quitting previously with a little kanga and while it filled the nicotine cravings, I still lusted for the feel of thick smoke - ended up failing. Not even missing cigarettes this time. Not even really having to think about quitting either, it's just happening.

ams6110 11y ago

I assume these are naturally occuring in the tobacco, as I can't see any reason that polonium or lead would be added to cigarettes. Does marijuana smoke contain similar radioactive components?

madaxe_again 11y ago
Both from the soil and from phosphate fertilisers - see http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/5914751 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/5914751 . So yeah, weed probably does have similar components, but if there's one thing in its favour, weed is an expectorant - far less crap sticks around in your lungs than with tobacco.
anonbanker 11y ago
And more importantly, what about marijuana vapor?

deleted 11y ago

[deleted]

catshirt 11y ago

so sad how jarring this perspective is and yet i still can't stop...

madaxe_again 11y ago
Get yourself a vape... I was on 60 a day 3 months ago, got myself a kanga KBOX mini and haven't looked back - lovely thick clouds of fog, feels like smoking a pipe, hits the nicotine spot nicely. Still coughing up the black-lung, but it's getting better.
- lholden 11y ago
  If your vape is making "thick clouds"... it's likely burning your tobacco and generating a lot more than just a vapor.
  - koube 11y ago
    It's vaporizing the nicotine, not burning. But I do agree that the pro-vape crowd gives vaping a lot more credit than is due. It's certainly not as harmless as they make it out to be. The Propylene Glycol and Vegetable Glycerine is probably harmless enough, but there's also burnt cotton or fiberglass, built up gunk, and none of the flavors are tested for inhalation. Nobody in the industry has any oversight. That being said, if someone is smoking, vaping is definitely a good idea. A good setup will make it much easier to stop smoking.
    - madaxe_again 11y ago
      Agreed on all points - I don't intend to vape long term, I've stepped down from 9mg to 6mg to 3mg nicotine oils over the last three months - and plan to drop the nicotine altogether in a few months, and then quit vaping sometime after. I'm effectively using it to decouple the physiological and psychological addictions so I can treat them independently of one another. Hell, it can't be worse than smoking - or for that matter taking a tube ride, or being in an underground car park... Or being in a place with fog machines - propylene glycol too. Also don't get burnt cotton with this sucker unless you run it totally dry - wick is always wet, and I run with a low wattage. Tried quitting previously with a little kanga and while it filled the nicotine cravings, I still lusted for the feel of thick smoke - ended up failing. Not even missing cigarettes this time. Not even really having to think about quitting either, it's just happening.