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I Enjoy A Smoke 5 - 6 Cigs A Day, Sometimes None. Is It Really That Bad For A Diabetic Or Is There Away Around It Not Smoking To Much Or So?

A DiabetesTeam Member asked a question 💭
Tzaneen, ZA

I enjoy a smoke 5 - 6 cigs a day, sometimes none. Is it really that bad for a Diabetic or is there away around it not smoking to much or so?

September 16, 2023
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A DiabetesTeam Member

No level of smoking is "healthy" - fair statement

What your real question is, is "how bad is it for me"

Since Diabetics are "most likely" to ultimately die from some form of heart/vascular disease with congestive heart failure, heart attack and stroke being the top 3 that take out about 7 in 10 diabetics ANYTHING that you do to further compromise your vascular system (smoking, no exercise, too much saturated fat) is practically tempting the beast

Only you can decide if the bit of additional "risk" is worth it for you - would you give up the smokes if you "knew" it would buy your 3 more years of life (as an example - nobody can give you that specific an estimate)

We make bad choices everyday - we weigh them against our needs and desires

I eat a Low Carb/High Fat diet to control my diabetes

Following that diet reduces my life expectancy by 4 years, BUT

Uncontrolled Diabetes reduces life expectancy by 15 to 20 years - so even though I suck at math losing 4 years is better than 15 or 20

If you love having your smokes, don't forget you have to live between now and whenever it's all over

Just have to remember it is most certainly taking away some time from the end and you have to live or die with the decision you make

I have trouble making those kind of decisions for "myself" so can only give my thoughts as to how I would consider the question - you have to answer that for yourself

But to be clear - those few smokes WILL take some time from you - only you can decide if it's worth it

September 16, 2023
A DiabetesTeam Member

@A DiabetesTeam Member Welcome and hi! I appreciate your question- but suspect there is no clear black/white answer, since smoking period, is a "gamble"; some will get sick and others won't, but there is no way to tell which group you are in, until it's too late. I suspect that having diabetes increases your risk of illness though.

I smoked a pack a day my entire life and finally quit 18 months ago. For me it was a process and a two-prong approach (both psychological and physical). I began by not smoking when I was out running errors in the car, and gradually added other times I wouldn't smoke. This changed my "habits" which was important while also reducing the number of cigs. I found I could get down to 7 or so daily, but no lower that way. So, I stopped smoking any cigs and tried the nicotine patches. They worked and eliminated my physical cravings. To save money, I bought the full-strength, ones and cut them into quarters, at first. I then cut them into eights, etc.... After 2-3 months, the tiny piece of nicotine patch became more like a "security blanket" and I no longer needed it. It was pretty painless for me using this approach.

September 16, 2023
A DiabetesTeam Member

Stop smoking. That is not good for your health.

September 16, 2023

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