“If I smoke a little, it doesn’t matter.” Is that true?
If “smoking kills” is correct, then it shouldn’t be misleading. Maybe we should say: “If I smoke regularly or a lot, THEN smoking kills.” It’s longer, but it’s accurate and fair about smoking.
We humans make many excuses to justify our bad habits. “A little” is one of them. Whether it’s drinking a bit of alcohol every day, checking my phone while driving, or smoking a little.
But what I or anyone else thinks about this “sugarcoating” of smoking doesn’t really matter. What counts is what the experts say.
I recently spoke with an expert in an episode of the vidcast series “B my Guest,” pulmonologist Dr. Eugenios Metaxas. This chat answered my questions and probably many others’ too.
I asked Dr. Metaxas: “Does smoking a little matter? Is there such a thing as ‘smoking a little’?”
Check out his answer at 13:23 in the video to stop fooling ourselves with false safety nets:
As a former smoker —and a heavy one at that— I often made excuses using myths like “my grandfather smoked until he was 90 and was fine,” to justify my habit.
I know that self-deception was easy because smokers often want to be deceived. Smokers don’t demand high standards for arguments and evidence. A simple lie is enough to keep enjoying their addiction with less guilt.
I also know that quitting takes effort and isn’t easy. But if passion is on one side and health on the other, it just takes a deep breath and some honesty to choose.
I was lucky to have Dr. Metaxas as my doctor, and I owe him the reason I don’t smoke today. In fact, I’ve been smoke-free for seven years. As he says in another part of the video, a doctor must earn the patient’s trust so they can truly listen.
During a tough time in my life, he showed me my daughter and said five words that were miraculous.
So finally: “Does smoking a little matter?”
The simple answer is: YES. The detailed explanation is in the video.
Nikos Katsaros
