[ExI] Is tobacco really harmful"?

[Stathis Papaioannou]

2009/11/26 Eugen Leitl <eugen at leitl.org>:

> Harmless, which is why nicotine is sometimes still used as an insecticide.
> Harmless, as in carcinogenic.

Participants in this discussion seem to conflate nicotine with
tobacco. Nicotine is the psychoactive component component of tobacco,
but any harmful effects it may cause are relatively minor. Yes, it can
kill in overdose, but even water can kill in overdose, and it is
impossible to get a lethal dose of nicotine from smoking. It is the
non-nicotine components of tobacco and tobacco smoke - tar,
nitrosamines, carbon monoxide -  that are responsible for most of the
harmful effects.


-- 
Stathis Papaioannou