Blowing smoke....

I know as much as anyone that smoking is bad for your health, but lately I've had to resort to it (well, along with coffee, tea and cola) as a means of maintaining my concentration and keeping my mind alert as I read what seems to be pages and pages of text.

While it does help in this regard, it doesn't really change the fact the excessive smoking can be hazardous to your health. Is there a way to get the stimulant effects of smoking while eliminating the potential health hazards? Probably not. Smoking is dangerous however which way you cut it. But if you must smoke, I recommend you try using minifilters. Minifilters are the small plastic devices you attach to the end of cigarettes which trap tar and nicotine from the inhaled smoke.

While I doubt that such filters will make smoking a safe activity, it does seem to work as far as significantly reducing the tar and nicotine in every puff. Take a look:

Here's a David Ross branded minifilter, fresh out of the box.


Here's how the minifilter looks like, after going through about a pack of West Ice cigarettes.

To ensure that you do benefit from using minifilters, avoid smoking more than you usually do. Otherwise, you'll be compensating for the decrease in the inhaled tar and nicotine by just smoking more cigarettes.

Of course, I'm not by any means recommending that people smoke. If you're a smoker, and if you want to lower your nicotine and tar intake, perhaps as a stepping stone to quitting altogether, minifilters may be of help. If you don't smoke, do yourself a favor and don't learn.

As for me, I'll be quitting in a few months time. By that time I would have gotten my readings and exams out of the way. Until then, perhaps this is a way I could have my cake and eat it too.

Warning: Cigarette smoking is dangerous to your health.