As the Christmas period approaches the number of people heading out to town will be on the rise, whether this is for a work do or just to enjoy some friendly company. However, how many of you will consider having a cigarette or two once out – even if you don’t smoke on a regular basis?
Here, Nicotinell — providers of expert advice on how to stop drinking and smoking — explains why you should steer away from social smoking this festive period and beyond…
Are you a low-level or occasional smoker?
Let’s see if you are indeed classed as a low-level or occasional smoker. There are three main groups to be aware of:
- The binge smoker — this is someone who will smoke a lot but only at certain times of the week, such as throughout the weekend.
- The low-level smoker — this is someone who will either smoke a small number of cigarettes on a daily basis, or choose to only smoke occasionally.
- The social smoker — this is someone who will likely smoke only when in social settings, such as at a pub or when hanging out with friends.
What are the risks of smoking socially?
If you’re one of the low-level or social smokers the main point to make is no matter what level you are there’s no safe level of smoking and the health dangers are considerable whether you smoke on occasion or every hour.
This statement has been underlined by online resource iCanQuit, which has been developed by the Cancer Institute NSW, when looking into the health effects of irregular smoking.
According to iCanQuit, a person who smokes between 2-4 cigarettes daily will almost triple their risk of dying from either lung cancer or heart disease. Light smokers were found to almost be at the same risk of suffering from cardiovascular disease as the everyday smoker.
A nationally representative study which was published in the American Journal of Health Promotion and involved over 39,000 people has also suggested links between social smokers and health risks.
The research taken found that over 10% of the group classed themselves as a social smoker and another 17% said they were current smokers. No matter the type of smoker though, as 75% of the current and social smokers were found to have high blood pressure and around 54% had high cholesterol. This was also after the research team had adjusted for different factors such as obesity and demographics.
Kate Gawlik, the assistant professor of clinical nursing at The Ohio State University and the study’s lead author, stressed that “doctors and nurses need to educate patients that social smoking is still a major health risk and is not a long-term healthy choice”.
She also advised: “Not smoking at all is the best way to go. Even smoking in a social situation is detrimental to your cardiovascular health.”
iCanQuit found that when splitting the genders, males who were occasional smokers had a 60% chance of dying earlier than non-smoker males. Meanwhile, females who were low-level smokers were estimated to lose 4-6 years of their lives than non-smoking females.
iCanQuit therefore was keen to point out: “Even if you smoke occasionally or just on weekends, you are still a smoker – and the health dangers of low level smoking are serious and significant.”
Collaboration