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bosnianboy12
Regular Member
Joined : Dec 2009
Posts : 342
Posted 8/30/2011 6:15 AM (GMT -8)
Hey guys. As some of you may know I have Crohn's Colitis that only effects my colon. I've been suffering lately for the past two years. I ran into a friend of mine who has the same condition. He recommended that I start smoking 3-5 cigarettes a day. At first I was like yeah right that's crazy. So I did some research on it. I decided to give it a try. I know that there are many other side effects of smoking but I'm willing to take the chance until there are some new break throughs in the field. A little more than a week later of smoking I feel around 75 percent better. I still have some cramps, but I swear to you that it's been helping me. Now, I don't recommend that anyone starts smoking because for me it was a desperate measure and I'm not a doctor. I'm just sharing what helped me. Honestly, I never though that such a thing would help me. I'm at the point where I'm willing to live a enjoyable life that is shorter than a longer life that is miserable. Any relief to me, I'll take. Thanks for listening guys.
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IamCurious
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2010
Posts : 3689
Posted 8/30/2011 6:53 AM (GMT -8)
You might have ulcerative colitis rather than Crohn's. Smoking helps relieve the symptoms of UC but aggravates the symptoms of Crohn's. Rather than smoking, many on the UC forum prefer nicotine lozenges or e-cigs to get their nicotine rather than ingesting all that toxic smoke from cigarettes.

Some research indicates that it is the carbon monoxide from smoking that relieves UC, not the nicotine. But so many have found that nicotine itself works. I would rather you tried clean nicotine lozenges to see if they are helpful rather than inhaling toxic carcinogenic smoke.
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Nanners
Elite Member
Joined : Apr 2005
Posts : 14999
Posted 8/30/2011 7:12 AM (GMT -8)
I think Babe has a point. You would be better off using the nicotine patches instead of inhaling all that poison from cigarrettes. You may have Crohns Colitis and the cigs are helping the colitis part, but you also have Crohns and smoking is bad for it. Hugs!
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pb4
Elite Member
Joined : Feb 2004
Posts : 20577
Posted 8/30/2011 9:59 AM (GMT -8)
I have crohn's colitis as well (it's definitely CD that I have since I have the perianal crohn's skin tags as well my CD was affecting my small intestine along with my colon and anal tags for the first 3 yrs when I first became sick so my DX is definitely CD)....I too found when I quit smoking that my CD turned even more horrible, I quit for 3 yrs and I started smoking again (I only smoke 6/day) and it definitely helped calm things down some.

It is true that it's the carbon monoxide that specifically aids with inflammation in the colon (which are basically the words from the researchers that discovered this, therefore it doesn't matter if the inflammation is from CD or UC.

Smoking is bad for CD in the small intestine but I have not had it affect my small intestines for the last 17 yrs and I've smoked through most of those 17 yrs....besides, we are all different and none of the research is necessarily written in stone either. Some CDers don't do any worse from smoking, while others do, just like not all UCers that smoke find relief either.


Apparently they're suppose to be working on a med that mimics what carbon monoxide from smoking does to help relieve inflammation in the colon, until then I will continue to smoke...my doc already confirmed to me that a mere 6 smokes a day is no different or worse than the pollution/poisons we breath in daily from our environment anyway.

I certainly am not trying to promote smoking because it is bad overall for you, I'm just sharing my experiances with it/without it.

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bosnianboy12
Regular Member
Joined : Dec 2009
Posts : 342
Posted 8/30/2011 10:20 AM (GMT -8)
Thank you everyone for your input.

pb4, I agree with you. Some it will help and some others it won't. I only smoke about 4-6 smokes a day. Like your doc said that's no worse than the pollution/poisons we breath in daily. I'm going to keep smoking that much until something new comes out because honestly it helps me tremendously.
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DaveF
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2010
Posts : 1122
Posted 8/30/2011 2:58 PM (GMT -8)
I was addicted to cigs for a long time. It was bad for my health, expensive, non social and a total bugger to quit.

Only about 5% of folks at any one time who are trying to quit are still smoke free 2 years later (or something like that).

I 100% understand feeling poorly everyday and needing to feel better. And perhaps having some cigs is the only way to go but please wait a bit.

Try the nicotine and other suggestions for a least a bit of time and see if they work for you.

Perhaps you will not have the trouble most have but many many have started cigs with 2 or 6 per day and before they knew it they were fully addicted and having a pack a day.

Again, I am not saying you are wrong, or that I do not understand, but for your own sake in the long term, and so you are not replacing one issue with another, put the cigs down for a bit and try the other alternatives. You can always take the cigs, but putting them down can be very very tough. You really do not want to start smoking unless it is the last resort.

Hope you consider

Dave

 

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torranceboy
Regular Member
Joined : Aug 2011
Posts : 125
Posted 8/30/2011 7:38 PM (GMT -8)
I don't know that piling on one bad situation on top of another is the wisest way to handle this.
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blueberrydecaf
Regular Member
Joined : Jan 2010
Posts : 257
Posted 8/30/2011 8:49 PM (GMT -8)
Well, on the one hand it totally makes sense - almost all of us take prescription drugs that have some pretty possibly dire consequences in order to feel better, so who am I to judge smoking as a medication.
I am happy you are feeling better.
On the other hand, I was a smoker for years, and unfortunately I think it is one of the things that caused / exacerbated my crohns (illeum / cecum). I haven't smoked for several years now (after trying so many times to quit after starting with "just a few a day") - now if I even have one drag it makes me SO sick - I flare, and feel nauseous for hours and bad crohns cramps. The last time I tried one cigarette it ruined a whole weekend holiday - sent me into severe flare - fever, couldn't eat for days. At the beginning of my CD this never happened, but the smoking made my CD worse and once my CD was worse I couldn't handle smoking.
My worry for you it that if you do have CD and not just colitis that the smoking may CAUSE CD to escalate in a different part of your system (like your small intestine) even if it is helping your colon.
Also, although a doctor may have said it is "no different than the toxins we breathe in every day" you are still breathing in those daily toxins PLUS now smoking, in effect doubling the number of toxins you breathe in every day.
I realize I'm going on a bit of a rant perhaps, and I'm not trying to tell you what to do - because like I said I was a smoker for a long time and I take my own drugs (remicade) that carry risks, but I also work in health care and see many, many, people die of COPD and lung cancer so I've seen the result and it is scarier than CD.
I understand your desire for relief from pain, and if this is it I really do wish you the best with it, and I really hope it doesn't cause you further problems.
Take care!
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Kiwi12
Regular Member
Joined : Aug 2010
Posts : 486
Posted 8/31/2011 1:34 AM (GMT -8)
are you sure it is not the LDN FINALLY kicking in ?  just a thought :)
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Tommy13
Regular Member
Joined : Jun 2011
Posts : 82
Posted 8/31/2011 11:57 AM (GMT -8)
I'm no doctor too. But my idea of this helping would be that the stress play a huge part in crohn's desease and cigarettes is proven to have good effect on stress. More than just help relaxe because of the feeling of smoking but some of the ingrediants really effect the brain to be less stressed. I saw a huge inprovement when I was less stressed and anxious. But I actualy would consider others alternatives than smoking.
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pb4
Elite Member
Joined : Feb 2004
Posts : 20577
Posted 8/31/2011 3:08 PM (GMT -8)
^ Yup, for me I do feel it's worth the risk...and I do believe my doc has the facts straight, 6 sigs/day is no worse than standing at a busy intersection waiting for the light to change and breathing in all those toxins released from vehicals....luckily I don't do that every or any day since I don't walk on the street and have to wait for lights to change.

Bottom line, smoking is not the only cancer causing thing out there, plenty of processed foods are cancer causing and harmful as well, but I don't eat any processed foods so if smoking is the biggest risk factor I take daily (6 sigs a day) then so be it...I won't live forever, and until they create the med (as researchers have said they are working on) to mimic the effect of carbon monoxide for inflammation in the colon then I will continue to smoke and I'm not advocating that others do, I'm just simply sharing my experiance and my docs facts on the matter.

I'm sure every 8 seconds of the day many are dying from other means as well around the world, not just the smokers...which could also be prevented but are not, and those deaths aren't cigarette related.
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IamCurious
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2010
Posts : 3689
Posted 8/31/2011 3:50 PM (GMT -8)
I am not a smoker so I am not 100 percent sure of these facts, but I heard that modern designer cigarettes of the past century are more of a health hazard than the older more natural cigs. For example is it true that in western countries there is definitely a correlation between smoking and cancer, but that correlation is much weaker in China?

Modern cigarettes contain about 600 additional additives some of which are hazardous to health. This is in addition to the 4000 chemicals created when tobacco burns in a cigarette. Health freaks who are also smokers (sounds like an oxymoron) would know more about this than I.

Mother Earth magazine advertises American Spirit cigs which have no additives. So if the smoke is necessary to alleviate symptoms then perhaps this would work better than designer cigarettes. Otherwise I would prefer clean nicotine lozenges (but I am not sure if I have Crohn's or UC).

http://quitsmoking.about.com/cs/nicotineinhaler/a/cigingredients.htm

Post Edited (BabeintheWoods) : 8/31/2011 6:11:02 PM (GMT-6)

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Zanne
Veteran Member
Joined : Apr 2005
Posts : 3763
Posted 8/31/2011 5:55 PM (GMT -8)
My mother was a Crohnie and a long time smoker. I can assure you it did not help her CD. It did however KILL her. She died 11 years ago of pneumonia which she could not recover from because she had COPD. My grandmother died from throat cancer. She never smoked but lived with my mother and inhaled the second hand smoke for decades. There are so many medications available that have much less risk involved and a greater success rate. Why would you start smoking when it can only lead to addiction and worse problems down the road.
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pb4
Elite Member
Joined : Feb 2004
Posts : 20577
Posted 8/31/2011 6:26 PM (GMT -8)
^ I started smoking again out of desperation due to how much worse my CD flared after I quit smoking for 3 yrs. Life in general can lead to worse problems down the road, that's just how I see life in general...I'd rather have a better quality of life CD wise as a smoker, than a longer and crappier life with my CD flare worse as it was when I quit smoking. For me it's quality not quantity.

My grandfather was a very heavy smoker, he lived to 102 yrs old, he died of a brain anurysm, never had cancer in his long life or heart disease. My 2 grandmother-in-laws (one still alive, one passed) both smoked moderately for decades, the one that passed was 99 yrs old (died of old age, not any complications from smoking) the other will be 98 in November, they both quit in their 80's....being a smoker does not guarantee death by cancer or heart disease or other smoking related illnesses...not for everyone that is.

Other than myself having CD I have no other health issues, my cholesterol is in the healthy range, my blood pressure is and always has been "perfect" according to my family doc...I've been smoking mostly on (over the yrs, sometimes off) since I was 14, I'm now 44, I've never had gum disease or any other periodontal disease/issues, infact my dentist always asks me if I've quit smoking because my gums, mouth and teeth are always so healthy (even when I used to be a heavy smoker) infact my teeth are quite white and I don't use whiteners on my teeth, very strong and have a nice gloss to them especially for my age and for how long I've mainly been a smoker....my dentist says my mouth is in better shape than many non-smoking patients that he has.

I take amazing care of myself regardless of being a smoker (6 cigs/day) I eat nothing processed, no refined sugar, no bad fats, I take vitamins, C, D, B12, A and just as importantly I exercise regularly and am in better shape than most teenagers/young adults. I have great muscle tone, quite amazing lung capacity considering how long I've been a smoker for...I weigh 120 lbs and I'm 5'5" tall.

Bottom line, although I smoke 6 cigs a day, weigh in the rest of my lifestyle, and if it helps control my crohn's then until they create a med that mimics the benefit of smoking for inflammation in the colon, I will not quit....if I can't leave my house and live somewhat of a life, I mine as well be dead now....that's how I look at it...for me.

I'm either allergic or non-responsive to traditional RX used for IBD that's why I use what is listed in my signature below...to be honest I'm glad that I'm either allergic or non-responsive to them....I have no side-effects to deal with like the meds they use to "treat" IBD which are all actually cross-over meds for other diseases/conditions.

Sorry about your Mom Zanne, my mom had UC, never smoked a day in her life, she also passed away last year (brain anurysm just like my Dad's father as I mentioned above)....she was 82 yrs old. Although smoking "can" increase the risk for cancer, heart disease, etc, doesn't mean it will for everyone that smokes...smoking is not the only thing that can cause people to die from cancer, heart disease, etc. And, finally, we're all gonna die someday anyway.
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JavaJay
Regular Member
Joined : Mar 2009
Posts : 452
Posted 9/1/2011 4:29 AM (GMT -8)
pb4,

I feel your pain.  I have had CD for 23 years now.  Nothing traditional has really worked for me either.  I am on Humira with a moderate CD and this is probably the last drug I will be on before I go to clinical trials.  I have had adverse affects to almost every medicine.  I just went through a really bad flare where I had severe D and was going close to 30 times a day and lost almost 30 lbs because of it.  I have been really depressed over my CD at times. 

I have to say though, I have never once throughout all of this have ever thought "hey, let me smoke a cig to feel better"  I work in NYC and have until 2 years ago lived in Queens, NY.  I have been dealing with pollution all my life.  Let me tell you...I haven't ever seen a news report or commercial or study that has shown that someone has died from normal pollution.  I have seen numerous reports about how cigs kill.  They not only kill you but everyone around you.

Now your family has been lucky and haven't suffered from cigaretts, but you are different.  You have an auto immune disease and that lowers your immune system.  You know what that means.  It means you are more likely to get the side effects from smoking.

I know things seem desperate but there are safer alternatives out there.  Try them...please.  You are on here a lot and give some great advice.  I would hate to not see you are here anymore because you are not around due to the cigs.

Also, you are sounding like you are a little depressed.  Have you seen anyone about that.  Sometimes talking to a therepist can help and it is a lot safer than smoking.  Please, weigh all your options and be safe.  I think a lot of people would miss you if you were gone.

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Nanners
Elite Member
Joined : Apr 2005
Posts : 14999
Posted 9/1/2011 6:14 AM (GMT -8)
PB4 I can see as a smoker you are fighting for the smokers (I was the same way when I was a smoker). But in this case, you yourself even admit that smoking is bad for people with Crohns. I smoked for 29 years, during that time I only had my two primary flares in the first 4 years then went on to a 20 year remission. But....my Crohns still came back and came back even worse. Thats when I learned how bad smoking is for Crohnies and I quit. I have had no problems being smoke free with my Crohns. And my Crohns is in the small and large intestine, I have Ileocolitis type of Crohns. There are other ways to get the nicotine, and I think BosnianBoy would be wiser to use one of those than put the poision of cigarette smoke in his body. jmho
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pb4
Elite Member
Joined : Feb 2004
Posts : 20577
Posted 9/1/2011 10:32 AM (GMT -8)
Javajay you're so sweet LOL!

I'm not depressed, I have been in the past but thanks to exercise (and ironically starting smoking again) I was feeling better CD wise and emotionally as well...having constant flaring mostly on the severe side of a good 15ish yrs with my CD would make anyone depressed...but I have it under better control now so emotionally I'm well.

I believe studies have been done to show that smoking contains as much poison/toxins to our bodies as those released in heavy traffic volume areas (ever since the 80's that was the favorite comparison for researchers to compare smoking, as there are many non-smokers that do die of the same type of smokers' diseases) afterall I believe there is benzene in cars as well as cigarettes. The fact that a quality life means more to me than quantity is only because I know I have a life-long illness and to be honest, I've been battling it since I was 24 and really don't look forward to dealing with it for another 30 or 40 yrs (cures are slow to be found) but I'm also not afraid of death either (as many are), this doesn't mean I'm looking forward to dying, it just means I can easily accept that it is a part of everyones life and everyones destiny...just being realistic about it....besides, I enjoy my 6 smokes a day and I'm pretty proud that I'm not smoking 1/2 a pack or more like I used to....I've been able to maintain it at a very small amount for yrs now and I'm good with that.

Yes Nanners, I will happily admit that smoking is bad for us, but I'm also pointing out that the amount one smokes does infact play a role as well, 6/day wouldn't likely kill me compared to 1/2 a pack or more/day...and it is the research that shows for the majority of CDers smoking can make CD worse in the small intestine, but that doesn't mean it does for every CDer as we are all different.
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pb4
Elite Member
Joined : Feb 2004
Posts : 20577
Posted 9/1/2011 10:55 AM (GMT -8)
Javajay,

Check out this link...

http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/downloads/pdf/eode/eode-air-quality-impact.pdf

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JavaJay
Regular Member
Joined : Mar 2009
Posts : 452
Posted 9/1/2011 10:58 AM (GMT -8)
Point taken...and now I have seen some numbers.  It is actually an eye opener.  Still, it is better numbers than smoking effects.

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pb4
Elite Member
Joined : Feb 2004
Posts : 20577
Posted 9/1/2011 11:09 AM (GMT -8)
I agree (better numbers) just saying 6/day works for me along with what's listed in my sig below....when I quit smoking using Zyban (which worked great for me) I was quite happy but when my CD took a turn for the worse, I still stuck it out for 2 yrs and 11 months of not smoking until I finally gave in and opted to smoke only a small amount each day. If it helped I would stick with it, if not then I would quit, it helped me by the next day when I noticed my guts were more managable, it may have been coincidence but I'm not risking finding out...I'm sick and tired after 20 yrs of CD predicting my entire life to me, right down to the clothes and shoes I wear (I missed wearing high heels, hard to run to the can in them and especially in public places) but I've been able to wear heels again and my CD isn't as controlling as it was when I was a non-smoker. It just works best this way for me, for now.
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Roni
Veteran Member
Joined : May 2003
Posts : 2481
Posted 9/1/2011 11:43 AM (GMT -8)
I used to smoke a little. Not sure how it affected my cd—I was sick before and after. lol.
It sure wasn't good for my asthma, that I know for sure.
We can all agree smoking is definitely bad for heart & lungs. I'm guessing it's probably not good for the immune system, either.
BB, I too think the LDN is probably the culprit of you feeling better, but what do I know?
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MikeB
Veteran Member
Joined : Mar 2006
Posts : 1169
Posted 9/1/2011 12:39 PM (GMT -8)
An old man went to the doctor, who noted what a spry and healthy 90-something he was, and asked what was the secret to his long life.

"I never smoked, drank or slept with a woman in my life!" the patient said proudly.

To which the doctor asked, "Then why did you bother?"

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sult and pepper
Regular Member
Joined : Jul 2011
Posts : 28
Posted 9/1/2011 2:24 PM (GMT -8)
I never knew i had crohns until april but have been smoking for a while got high blood pressure felt unwell day by day when i started smoking the most my intest... perforated and i was diagnosed with the worst part of crohns where all my bowel area was inflamed.
Don't smoke fight against it, you'll do it.
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pb4
Elite Member
Joined : Feb 2004
Posts : 20577
Posted 9/1/2011 4:39 PM (GMT -8)
tsitodawg,

The best way I can explain myself is...if it wasn't for CD I wouldn't be eating the diet I eat or likely even exercising...everything that I do (including smoking 6 cigs a day) is for some relief from CD...the patch does nothing for me.

I'm well aware of the effects of smoking, and I appreciate your concern (I mean that sincerely as sometimes sincerity does get lost in written posts) but my own personal outlook on life is, when your time is up, it's up and there's still a better chance that something besides smoking 6 cigs a day will kill me at some point in my life but if it happens to be the 6 cigs/day then so be it...I'm trying to be here for a good time, not a long time. Besides, if I didn't smoke my 6 cigs a day then (and didn't have crohn's) then I might actually be "perfect" LOL....I don't drink or do drugs, smoking is the only bad habit I have and I only do it because I get some added relief from my CD as a result of it. I should mention, I used to be quite the junk-food junky (which is not a healthy life-style either) and even though I've always been lean, eating unhealthy for the majority of my life wasn't good either...like MikeB's post reflects...."why bother". Giving up the bad diet wasn't easy and the only reason I did it was for the sake of feeling so crappy CD wise...same reason why I find CD benefit from 6 cigs/day...I don't know how else to justify it to everyone here, not that I really have to but I do appreciate the concern.

MikeB---Kudos to your post, it definitely proves a point in my books!!
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Roni
Veteran Member
Joined : May 2003
Posts : 2481
Posted 9/1/2011 7:22 PM (GMT -8)
pb4, I feel the same way about coffee. I've even gone months, probably years, where I give it up, but it's so enjoyable when I drink it again. Especially a frothy cappuccino from Starbucks with whipped cream and chocolate drizzle...
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