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        New Message Board Archives >> Jul-Sep 2003 >> Smoking
        
(Message started by: stuey on Jul 28^th, 2003, 3:29pm)

Title: Smoking
Post by stuey on Jul 28^th, 2003, 3:29pm

I have seen mixed results from people here about smoking. I am wondering how much smoking does contribute to CH since smoking does rob the brain of oxygen. If oxygen does abort attacks, is smoking a big contributor to having CHs since our brains are getting less oxygen to begin with? I was at a friends house yesterday trying to explain what the CHs are like and I said they have something to do with air pressure, barometric pressure, etc., and the first thing out of his mouth was that I need an oxygen tank. He said it sounds like my brain isn't getting enough oxygen. So wondering what others think about this. After a nasty attack I smoke a couple of cigarettes and really seem to enjoy them then. I have seen posts where people say they don't lessen after they have quit and others where they say they have helped. So does anyone know what's really up with the smoking - CH correlation especially since CHs seem to usually happen more often in male smokers moreso than others. Is it safe to say that most people who post on this site are smokers?

Title: Re: Smoking
Post by don on Jul 28^th, 2003, 3:43pm

Read here

http://www.clusterheadaches.org/library/general/lifestyle.htm

Title: Re: Smoking
Post by OwieMan on Jul 28^th, 2003, 4:05pm

Mine are worse now since quitting several months ago.

This does not mean that the smokes were helping them, just that this has been the worst round of attacks yet...

I quit smoking because my father died of cancer due to smoking.

NOW!!! If you want to make an informed decision about smoking, I'll tell ya. CANCER SUCKS FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY. Quit smoking

I know that nicotine constricts blood vessels and thats the last thing you want when you have a vascular headache. Even though it means your brain vascules(made up a word) are constricted so are the ones leading out of your brain and I would assume that would cause higher pressure overall. Higher pressure to me means more pain.

Better to have one condition than two if you ask me.

Title: Re: Smoking
Post by eyes_afire on Jul 28^th, 2003, 6:32pm

I have never been a smoker. When I used to go out drinking, I believed that smoke was 'triggering my headaches' but now I know that it was the alcohol. Personally, I doubt that CH has anything to do with air pressure or barometric pressure as it's root cause. I also suspect that the amount of 'oxygen robbing' is minimal in comparison to blood oxygen levels... but I don't know for sure. Nicotine is a vasoconstrictor... I would think that this wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing for CH. The net effect of Imitrex is vasoconstriction, although I'm thinking that it works on CH by other means as well. Also, nicotine is a CNS stimulant. My totally-off-the-cuff-observation: CNS stimulants OK for CH.... CNS depressants BAD for CH. I'm not advocating nicotine. I never could find a good reason to start smoking. Drinking is a different story ;).

--- Steve

Title: Re: Smoking
Post by Charlie on Jul 28^th, 2003, 8:13pm

Everyone seemed to smoke at the con. It isn't good for anything but quitting is a real chore. The evidence for a CH and smoking link is pretty thin other than that the board member smokers are twice the national average.

I don't buy all the horrors of second-hand smoke. It isn't good but blaming it for disease is very very iffy. It works so well for us non smokers though. 8)

Charlie, who quit because of bad family histories.

Title: Re: Smoking
Post by KingOfPain on Jul 28^th, 2003, 8:18pm

http://www.headachesupportgroups.com/echat44/smoking.gif

Title: Re: Smoking
Post by Pushkin on Jul 28^th, 2003, 8:42pm

For me cigarette smoke is just as much a trigger as alcohol. I have never smoked, and perhaps I'm overly sensitive to it since my grandfather died of lung cancer and my father of heart disease - both were heavy smokers and both died relatively early.

Second hand smoke will almost always trigger a bad headache for me, just like alcohol.

Just my personal experience, but I have to avoid smoke when I'm in CH cycles. Before the present smoking bans I would get CH on planes from cabin smoke, in restaurants and at meetings - now, that is rarely a problem.

Title: Re: Smoking
Post by Ueli on Jul 28^th, 2003, 9:11pm

stuey

An oxygen tank is sure a great asset for a clusterhead, since oxygen can in many cases abort a cluster attack.

However, this has nothing at all to do with the oxygen supply to the brain.

Either your brain gets the required amount of oxygen or you're dead (or at least in very serious trouble).

Since the brain is the most important organ, nothing goes without it, it takes absolute precedence on all resources, even if that means other parts of the body will suffer from short supplies.

So, if the oxygen carrying capacity of the blood is impaired, be it because some blood cells are busted by carbon monoxide from smoking or high altitude or blood loss or anything else, performance on physical efforts gets reduced, but the brain still gets the required amount of oxygen.

When the blood transports an unusual large amount of oxygen, as when breathing pure oxygen, there will be no over-supply to the brain. Instead the brain issues a command to constrict the arteries and thus bringing down the supply to the required amount. It is this autonomous vasoconstriction that helps to abort an attack by breathing oxygen.

Smoking may have all sorts of bad effects (ask Charlie ;D), but a smoke just before or during an attack is probably more helpful than not, after all, nicotine is a vasoconstrictor.

PFNADs
Ueli

Title: Re: Smoking
Post by fubar on Jul 28^th, 2003, 11:11pm

Now, before I continue, I want you all to know that, in addition to my real job, I own a bar in California. This is a typical neighborhood 'cheers' type bar. California has no-smoking laws in all public places, including bars. My bar is right next to the police station... so we are a smoking bar. Very smoking. It's very very smoky in there.

I only tell you that because I really hate smoke. I hate the smell, and the actual smoke, if I get it in my lungs, makes me pukey green. I just deal with it at the bar, I have to. I dealt with it in Europe. I had to. I didn't enjoy it... people smoking where I wanted to, oh, eat food. Breath air. You know, the normal stuff you like to do. Bottom line was, I knew everybody had the right to smoke so I didn't hold it against them, I just dealt with it, like I do at my bar.

With all that being said, looking at all the pictures from the convention, I was almost glad not to be there. I just find it incredibly hard to enjoy myself around smoke, and there seemed to be cigarettes everywhere. I know I would have LOVED to meet all the folks and stuff, but that looked very non-smoker unfriendly to me. I'm not saying it to start some debate, just observing that the smoker contingent seemed to dominate that gathering.

-Fu [who has many smoker lifetime friends]

Title: Re: Smoking
Post by stuey on Jul 29^th, 2003, 8:15am

Fu you would love being in New York City since they've banned smoking in bars here. Everybody gotta go outside and disrupt the neighbors to smoke. Thanks everyone and Ueli that was some kinda post, real smart stuff and I thank you for the information. Stuey

Title: Re: Smoking
Post by catlind on Jul 29^th, 2003, 8:57am

That's interesting that nicotine is a vasoconstrictor. The doc I saw last week mentioned to me that he has yet to meet a clusterhead that doesn't smoke. He then went on to say there was some thought CH actually causes smoking and not the other way around. I simply dismissed the info, but perhaps there's something to it.

Cat

Title: Re: Smoking
Post by OwieMan on Jul 29^th, 2003, 11:22am

I think the difference may be in that oxygen is only vasoconstricting the brains vessels while nicotine constricts all of the blood vessels.

If the brain is the only one constricting then the pressure in thebrain would go down. If all blood vessels in the body are constricted, then perhaps the pressure doesnt go down.

When I used to smoke, it would make the headaches throb.