Vaping for nicotine advantages?

[Woofer]

As in obfuscated C?

Dabbled a bit years back, but only dabbled. And I'm sure all gone now!

No, obfuscated C would not be at all like poetry, more like PHP now that is one ugly language.

C programming should be an excellent mental exercise, I sure smoked a lot while programming.

 

[mosspa]

I thought about entering the contest a couple years ago since it always looked like my C code was obfuscating anything any of my programs did. I figured that I'd have a chance to win.

 

[lynn508]

This was one of my favorite posts on ECf a year ago. I post under a new name now. After several years I just don't see the need for the high nic. 48mg would probably do me in besides it tastes like crap and at this point I tend to go for the flavor. I was an atc and dealt with high stress. I only wish this had been available back then.

 

[Nimaz]

I used to be so exited with new findings, scientific discoveries in hands taking me to a spot where I couldn't control my body over my brain not knowing what to do with my body self, walking around frenetically, scratching my head, speaking out loud to myself with crazy motions, thinking further, smoking was a gate away from hitting my head against the wall to cool down my boiling brain also in an attempt to squeeze the juice out of it. My vaping doesn't cool my brain down when such circomptences take place... I have to get out, go for a long run so my brain get in peace by focussing in the effort taking place rather than the perspectives and implications of the discovery... Nicotine has several known physiological benefits, including calming neurological effects which have been clearly demonstrated. The 24mg/ml juice that I used when I started vaping was acting as such but my current nicotine content doesn't do that job no more... Using nicotine in vaping as a neurological stimulant is a fairplay but I have no intention in using it to enhance my performances on a daily basis as it can lead in overall dependency even if it's a placebo effect. I just vape for joy and pleasure, at specific time during the day, enhancing my moment of relaxation with the peace in mind that this habit will not take me to my grave in contrast with smoking.

 

[mosspa]

People who use drugs to control their blood pressure are dependent, as are people with Parkinson's disease who take l-DOPA. I view my nicotine use the same way. It allows me to cognitively function at a level similar to which I functioned when I was a much younger man. To not do something beneficial because of dependence is ridiculous.

 

[Nimaz]

Again, using nicotine as a neurological stimulant is fairplay, but comparing insulin to diabetic or dopamine analogs or agonists to Parkinson patients with the potential cognitive benefits of nicotine to our health is not appropriate because the degree of dependencies are different. Without insulin an insulino-dependent diabetic would die... You and I will survive without nicotine, but I will not without insulin injections... A Parkison patient won't survive long without dopamine treatment. Indeed, nicotine is investigated for the treatment of several illness including Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, depression and anxiety, schizophrenia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, pain and even obesity. Would you recommend Vaping to such patients? Promoting vaping as a way to deliver drugs like nicotine is a very bad idea. I would propose other available effective options but sorry Professor mosspa, I'm not a Doctor.

 

[DC2]

Promoting vaping as a way to deliver drugs like nicotine is a very bad idea.

I assume you meant to add...
In a world not turned upside down by greed...

Nicotine IS a medicine for many.
And in my opinion soon will officially be a medicine if Big Pharma has their way.

Sanctioned, approved, authorized, and allowed as such.

A bad idea as you say? Yeah, probably in this current world structure.
But changing that world structure should be the primary goal of any logical human.

Given that such a change is nearly impossible, how can it be logical?
Doesn't matter, gotta do it, or at least gotta try.

When you stop trying, tomorrow is preordained.

 

[Tivaliman]

I'm a university professor (neuroscience), and in many of my classes I have extolled the virtues of nicotine when divorced from smoke. Having followed the vaping forums for several years, and watching various websites for adverse effects, I have finally decided to take my own advice and begin vaping to reap the benefits of nicotine. I am 59 years old and haven't smoked a cigarette since April 12, 1972 (after smoking from 7th grade and throughout high school). Many of my friends think I'm nuts, but they can't really dispute the science that strongly suggests that nicotine, especially in older individuals, improves cognitive performance, reduces the probability of Alzheimer's onset, improves memory (especially in reducing those 'senior moments' when you can't get the word out you are looking for), and reduces 'time to sleep' at bedtime. I'm in good shape, physically, and except for a small; increase in heart rate and blood pressure immediately after vaping, the effects are transient (last about 45 min - 1 hr), and don't seem to be detrimental. I vape 5-8 drags about 4 times a day, and I generally don't vape before noon, so I'm probably clearing most of the nicotine (assuming a 2-3 hr half life) daily.

I have been vaping for about a month and I have observed some phenomenological effects that I didn't anticipate, the most dramatic of which is the increase in ethanol-induced euphoria (alcohol buzz) after a few drinks. When I quit smoking 40-some years ago, I did so without any withdrawal symptoms, but I think quitting (I was smoking almost 2 packs a day at the time) was easy because there didn't seem to be much reason to smoke (i.e., I don't think I ever observed euphoria strengthening back then, but in retrospect, with my cigarette usage being so high at the time, I was probably nicotine saturated so the contrast effect, may not have been apparent).

This past month, I have recorded how many "senior moments" I had in my lectures, and in casual conversation, and they averaged about 1.8/day. This coming semester I intend to vape before each lecture and compare my memory lapses when nicotine stimulated to what I observed this past semester. I know this is not a real experiment, but I think it will be interesting even if I even experience a placebo effect.

Anyway, does anybody else here vape for similar reasons?

Hi mosspa, like the post, man.
You know I was thinking... The increase in heart rate, even though people generally link it to smoking. I don't believe it's because it's the nicotine.
The reason I'm saying this, is because:
I've been getting help for anger management at my local cessation community centre. There one could receive help for a number off things. Such as AA, relapse prevention against drugs amongst other things. So I had to turn up to a "breathing " class. Breathing exercises to reduce the heart rate.
It also seems, that by breathing in another way, we could command the heart to increase the heart rate eg. Exercising at gym. Where we deliberately need to increase our oxygen levels.
I think, because vaping has that kind of demand, to be able to enjoy a decent cloud production and reach that sweet spot in terms of flava, we efficiently change the way we " tick" just for a short while.
I mean, there are some vapers, who don't use nicotine in their juices and still might experience the sensations that a professional breathing instructor would experience.

 

[Nimaz]

I assume you meant to add...
In a world not turned upside down by greed...

Nicotine IS a medicine for many.
And in my opinion soon will officially be a medicine if Big Pharma has their way.

Sanctioned, approved, authorized, and allowed as such.

A bad idea as you say? Yeah, probably in this current world structure.
But changing that world structure should be the primary goal of any logical human.

Given that such a change is nearly impossible, how can it be logical?
Doesn't matter, gotta do it, or at least gotta try.

When you stop trying, tomorrow is preordained.

Yes, I was about to add in my comment that is the job of Pharmaceutical companies. I definitively acknowledge some of the benefits of nicotine. We choose to vape over smoking for good reasons but both provide nicotine. Some may wrongly argue that getting nicotine by smoking is as safe or as risky as vaping... Also, many vape without nicotine and other try to decrease the nicotine content in their juices. In contrast with Professor mosspa, I am not trying to self medicate myself with vaping, but rather find it more enjoyable than smoking and definitively less harmful to my lungs. However, I respect his choice and approach.

 

[Tivaliman]

People who use drugs to control their blood pressure are dependent, as are people with Parkinson's disease who take l-DOPA. I view my nicotine use the same way. It allows me to cognitively function at a level similar to which I functioned when I was a much younger man. To not do something beneficial because of dependence is ridiculous.

I'm sorry if I came across like an idiot, lol. I have no research skills whatsoever, I try to contribute as much as I can. I'm aware that there are serious individuals on board the Ecf train. Also I need some technical/scientific information to help me raise my point better, in my home with family members and the whole street, where I live. There are a number of underage smokers in our street corner. They can afford latest mobile technology, I don't think their parents would prefer them to smoke than vape. Especially when, if it's "cool to smoke" and blow smoke in someone's face, it's even cooler chucking seriously large clouds from a vape. I have no doubts people will come to accept vaping. It's up to us to demonstrate its capable and far more superior than patches and gum

 

[DC2]

In contrast with Professor mosspa, I am not trying to self medicate myself with vaping, but rather find it more enjoyable than smoking and definitively less harmful to my lungs. However, I respect his choice and approach.

I too was self-medicating with nicotine.

I was using it for it's well-known and well-studied mental benefits.
And I was using it for the potential to stave off Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

I say WAS in all of the sentences above because I no longer use nicotine.
Not by choice mind you, but by way of force.

Maybe some day soon I will decide to pay the $50/month ransom.
But my preference would be to retire within the next year.

Either way, I will not go to my grave nicotine free, that much I can promise.

 

[Robino1]

I sometimes wonder if I, as a smoker, could not get rid of the cigarettes as easily as others because I was/am self medicating with nicotine.

I've always wondered how some can just quit cold turkey or even wean themselves off yet others, like myself, cannot.

I just thank god that hubby suggested an ecigarette to me. Granted, I have been able to lower my nic content without very much effort. I am pretty sure that I am at the level that I will be for a very long time.

Just a thought, now that they are studying nicotine in the medical field.

 

[Nimaz]

I too was self-medicating with nicotine.

I was using it for it's well-known and well-studied mental benefits.
And I was using it for the potential to stave off Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

I say WAS in all of the sentences above because I no longer use nicotine.
Not by choice mind you, but by way of force.

Maybe some day soon I will decide to pay the $50/month ransom.
But my preference would be to retire within the next year.

Either way, I will not go to my grave nicotine free, that much I can promise.

I guess it'a good thing that we now have now the option to consume nicotine without relying on pharmaceutical or tobacco products. For example, it was suggested that smokers are less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease. More specifically, Alzheimer's patients showed that those who wore nicotine patches were better able to remember and pay attention than those who didn't. Some studies showed that nicotine boosted cognitive function in older people who didn't have Alzheimer's, but were showing signs of age-related mental decline. This a good rational for using nicotine in these contexts with the idea in mind to set a appropriate dosing and scheduled regimen to reach optimal potency. Nicotine is similar to acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter in the brain that declines in Alzheimer's disease. Drugs such as Aricept help people with Alzheimer's by boosting brain levels of acetylcholine. Apparently, nicotine binds to the receptors in the brain normally occupied by acetylcholine, which benefits people who need more, but it has no apparent effect on those who don't. "Nicotine doesn't appear to enhance normal people," Newhouse said, "but in people who show some degree of cognitive impairment, nicotine appears to produce a modest but measurable effect on cognitive function, particularly in areas of attention and, to some extent, memory." Interestingly, "nicotine by itself isn't very addictive at all, according to Dr. Paul Newhouse, the director of Vanderbilt University's Center for Cognitive Medicine. Nicotine seems to require assistance from other substances found in tobacco to get people hooked." Theses substances are not present in ejuices, or at least the one that I am concocting myself. In any case, I sincerely hope that you will be soon able to bypass what forces you out of nicotine usage and that you will reach your retirement goals.

 

[mosspa]

@DC2

$50/mo ransom?

 

[DC2]

@DC2

$50/mo ransom?

My health insurance through my employer charges $50/month for nicotine users.
Maybe "extortion" is a more appropriate way of looking at it.

 

[mosspa]

My health insurance through my employer charges $50/month for nicotine users.
Maybe "extortion" is a more appropriate way of looking at it.

No matter what one's reason for vaping is, I think we all share the responsibility of making people aware of the distinction between smoking and nicotine, even if it is only that they are not equivalent from a health perspective. I did a Pubmed search yesterday on "nicotine cognition". It's amazing to me that I had to go through about five pages of hits before I found a human cognition study that didn't use tobacco in one way or another, and the paper I came to was looking at nicotine patches in cognitive performance of schizophrenics, or some such abnormal population. What makes it all the more strange is that you would think that a scientist would like to maintain as much control as possible, and avoid all the confounds that are inherent when looking at the effects of tobacco smoke. Also, it doesn't make much sense from an economic perspective, either, when you can buy a half liter of 48 mg/ml spectroanalyzed nicotine for less than a carton of Marlboros. .

 

[mosspa]

My health insurance through my employer charges $50/month for nicotine users.
Maybe "extortion" is a more appropriate way of looking at it.

Also, how would the insurance company know if you were using nicotine?

 

[DC2]

Also, how would the insurance company know if you were using nicotine?

They wouldn't under "normal" circumstances.
But I'm not currently in a position to take chances.

No matter what one's reason for vaping is, I think we all share the responsibility of making people aware of the distinction between smoking and nicotine, even if it is only that they are not equivalent from a health perspective.

I couldn't possibly agree with you more.
I wish more people felt this way, or understood the need for speaking out.

I speak out when and where I can, which is almost everywhere and all the time.
Well, except work, where I am between a large rock and a very hard place.

 

[mosspa]

They wouldn't under "normal" circumstances.
But I'm not currently in a position to take chances.

I speak out when and where I can, which is almost everywhere and all the time.
Well, except work, where I am between a large rock and a very hard place.

Just out of curiosity, what kind of organization do you work for? After I got my degree, I was in the U.S. Navy for a while as an MSC O3 scientist, even they weren't that invasive.

 

[mosspa]

Before anybody asks... Research Physiologist