Old school alternative to cigarettes

[SnarkyClark]

So, is pipe smoking considered "smoking" in regards to this forum?

I ask, because with the FDA FUD hovering over e-cigs and most forms of alternative tobacco (they already said they will pull snus and ariva once the new bill passes), I have gone back to the old briar after 20 years.

Why? well since I FINALLY quit cigs I refuse to go back to them. And I seriously enjoy pipe smoking (no inhaling of course) as a relaxing pastime. But of course there is terribly conflicting studies about the general risks of pipe smoking.

I have found reputable studies showing that the risks are minor compared to cigs, and others that show almost the same risks...

Thoughts?

[Nick O'Teen]

I'd consider it "smoking". But then again, unlike Bill Clinton, I did inhale
I think that might account for the variable studies - it's a myth that pipe smokers "never inhale". Some do, some don't (I've met plenty of both,) and it stands to reason you'll get VERY different results depending who you test!

2oz of nice, light Burley and Virginia blends a week in my Missouri Meerschaum (cob) was my regular staple for the last 10 years or so. I never had much patience for dark, aromatic Latakias and Periques - they sweat all the nicotine out of them, so they're all flavour and no substance.
Maybe smokers who start on a pipe are less likely to inhale? I started on cigarettes and snuff, so by the time I took to the pipe I had a well-cultivate craving for the nicotine.

[OutWest]

imho it's smoking, but I also know that my grandpa spent just as much time cleaning and fussing with his pipe as he did smoking it. And, the cleaning and messing with it was almost as relaxing for him as smoking it. So, if youre smoking it less than you would a cigarette, there is that plus.

[Denni]

It's smoking. My transition from pipe (time-consuming) to cigarettes was flawless, and once you're used to inhaling cigarettes, you will probably inhale pipe smoke which may be even worse re. tar.

Plus nowadays there is no place where you can smoke a pipe in peace anymore If I retreat to some highland cottage for a protracted stay I may get one again. It's nice to have a pipe and a single malt next to a crackling fire

[dEFinitionofEPIC]

(they already said they will pull snus and ariva once the new bill passes

Snus?!? Do you have a link to this information?!?

[TropicalBob]

Pipes are my passion. I smoke about five a day, but, yes, it is smoking and I'm forced into the same uncomfortable corral as a cigarette smoker. I will say this loud and clear: I get compliments, not complaints, from people who wander into my exhaled pipe smoke. All the time. A common remark is that it reminds them of their grandfather, or that it doesn't stink like cigarettes.

I do not inhale and no real pipe smoker inhales. Only ex-cig smokers who don't know better. Pipe smoke is designed to be absorbed through the mouth and nose, with a PH that makes it extremely harsh if inhaled. If you want to commit suicide, inhale pipes and cigars.

I was greatly influenced by a Reader's Digest article a half-century ago that noted pipe smokers live longer than even non-smokers. Basically, this fact is the result of personality differences, not smoking differences. Pipe smokers tend to be unruffled, extremely calm types. Cig smokers are frantic and stressed much of the time. A cig smoker often goes nuts trying to adapt to pipe smoking's slow rituals of cleaning, packing, lighting, etc. Cig smokers want their fix right now!

I also love the way I look with a pipe in my mouth. It's damn dashing! I've become fond of "retro" even down to things like after shave fragrances. Pipes are retro. But we are a dying breed. Cigars had a revival in the affluent 1990s, but pipes are still a small minority. One of my tobacco stores stopped selling pipe tobacco and accessories last year because of a lack of demand.

Pipe smokers also have an incredible assortment of flavors, types of tobacco, and styles of pipe. A lifetime could be devoted to simply trying them all. And the urge to "collect" is strong.

Bottom line: I use snus all day, Stonewall dissolvables much of the day, e-smoke almost non-stop, inhale nasal snuff when the mood strikes, but puffing the pipe is the definition of contentment. Everything else is a nicotine delivery system; a pipe delivers pure pleasure.

[Mohave]

(they already said they will pull snus and ariva once the new bill passes)

Please elaborate on that. This is news to me.

[TropicalBob]

It's not true. It's true that they will have control over them, but a ban is not proposed. What will happen is that new devices marketed recently or in the future will face intense scrutiny, so much so that they likely won't be approved for sale. That will include the new Camel Snus and Camel dissolvable products. Star Scientific, maker of Ariva and Stonewall, was selling before the cutoff date, and should not be effected. Swedish snus should not be effected.

This whole bill is pro-Philip Morris. So RJR loses. As do we all.

[Mohave]

<SNIP>

...What will happen is that new devices marketed recently or in the future will face intense scrutiny, so much so that they likely won't be approved for sale....

<SNIP>

...Star Scientific, maker of Ariva and Stonewall, was selling before the cutoff date...

<SNIP>

This whole bill is pro-Philip Morris. So RJR loses. As do we all.

I fully agree with your accurate summary of the pending FDA legislation, and of the direction its supporters intend for it to take us after it passes. Anyone who would like to wade through the text of it can do so here:

GovTrack: H.R. 1256: Text of Legislation, Engrossed in House

But of course plain text of a statute is one thing, and implementation is another, there are some aspects of this legislation's effects that are not entirely clear, and it was also not clear to me if the original poster was actually referring to this bill (now pending in the Senate) or to FDA/executive branch statements related to it, or to something else.

I got quite a jolt and spit my morning coffee all over the keyboard when I read that parenthetical sentence. But then, I've been doing that a lot lately.

[dEFinitionofEPIC]

I got quite a jolt and spit my morning coffee all over the keyboard when I read that parenthetical sentence.

Indeed.... Glad TB cleared that up. However, there's probably no way of knowing how all this is going to actually play out until the time comes.... Guess I'll just cross my fingers and wait and see....