Analgesic effects of nicotine . . .?

[Benzadmiral]

Something I've noticed and have been meaning to bring up for a while:

When I get up most mornings, I feel kind of stiff and sore. (As you might expect; I'm a ways over 29!) Usually an ibuprofen plus coffee, stretching, and working out washes away most of it; and I do those three to four mornings a week. But . . .

. . . I've noticed that on the non-workout days, when I have a pipe -- even a mild blend -- with coffee, not even including an over-the-counter pain pill, I soon feel much less soreness compared to when I get up. The leaf helps to wake me up; but it also seems to reduce the soreness in shoulder and back.

Now, none of this is crippling pain. It's the kind you get, I guess, from sleeping in an odd position, or from inactivity, and just plain wear and tear. I'm not saying that smoking a pipe would relieve anything acute or major. But -- it's noticeable.

See here: Acute Analgesic Effects of Nicotine and Tobacco in Humans: A Meta-Analysis - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4912401/ "Meta-analytic integration for both threshold and tolerance outcomes revealed that nicotine administered via tobacco smoke and other delivery systems (e.g., patch, nasal spray) produced acute analgesic effects that may be characterized as small to medium in magnitude[.]" Not exactly light reading, I'll admit; and it concentrates on cigarettes and snuff. However, it does seem to point the way.

Have any of you noticed a similar phenomenon? Or has this been common knowledge for years, and I'm just stumbling across it?

 

[luvmysuper]

I haven't noticed any analgesic effect, but I usually take my pipe tobacco orally.


Seriously though, I don't know if limbering up in the morning is related to my coffee / tobacco use, or just moving around itself - which seems to help.
The issue of determining effect is problematic because I never have a baseline without coffee/tobacco/moving to compare it to.
I wouldn't be surprised though.
There have been numerous reports of beneficial effects from tobacco and many other things once touted as "bad for you".

 

[Benzadmiral]

I haven't noticed any analgesic effect, but I usually take my pipe tobacco orally.


Seriously though, I don't know if limbering up in the morning is related to my coffee / tobacco use, or just moving around itself - which seems to help.
The issue of determining effect is problematic because I never have a baseline without coffee/tobacco/moving to compare it to.
I wouldn't be surprised though.
There have been numerous reports of beneficial effects from tobacco and many other things once touted as "bad for you".

There was once a series of "expert" articles opining that coffee was bad for you. So were eggs and red meat. The cycle has come back around to "beneficial" on those (at least the coffee and eggs).

 

[DesertIguana]

I enjoy Cigars like George Burns. Believe Burn Eason late night telvision show.

Host asked Burn how his doctor felt about Cigar habit?

Burns replied he did not know last two doctors were dead.

Burns lived to very old age.

 

[Columbo]

I do not have the evidence in front of me, but I believe that nicotine (aka Vitamin N around here), as a mild stimulant, consumed in moderation, may offer some beneficial effects. Same as coffee, red meats, red wine, and eggs can.

With the emphasis on "in moderation". The other factor is how it is consumed. For eggs, for instance, I recently read that one of the beneficial nutritional elements contained in eggs are often lost, depending on how the egg is cooked, and that steaming or boiling is the best method to retain them. That fits with my senior preference for a single poached egg, vs. the sunny side up ones I would devour in mass quantities as a young man.

As a potentially addictive substance, nicotine can develop into a moderate dependency, just as caffeine can. That seems very dependent on the person, in my experience. Some people are more addiction prone than others.

I won't get a bad headache if I miss my morning pipe. But I might get one if I miss my morning coffee (2 cups only). In any event, I find both relaxing and rejuvenating morning pastimes that make my days better.

As far as the deleterious substances found elsewhere in tobacco (tars, etc.), I don't consider a little Vitamin N part of that group. And especially not in the much higher quality tobacco mixtures that pipe smokers enjoy vs. our mass cigarette-puffing friends.

I have always been a skeptic over what "they" say is "good" or "bad" for you, as the science is often changing and contradictory over time. And those 96 year old relatives can sometimes offer a better real-world opinion than the FDA.

I'll just add my longstanding habit of smoking a cigar outside to dispel my allergies. It works, and on balance a cigar seems a bit more "natural" than all those OTC and prescription concoctions that would otherwise suppress the allergies.

 

[5whiskey]

For what it's worth to the discussion, smoking a pipe slowly with lightly cased mild tobacco does wonders for a mild sore throat. If the sore throat is severe it's hard to even light the pipe, much less make it through the pipe.

In this particular case, however, it would be hard to filter out the effect of nicotine versus the warmth of the smoke (and possibly even the tar) in numbing your tonsils. I think there's more to it than just the heat, however. The soothing affect lasts for hours after a smoke, and I think that if it were merely the effects of the heat then that time would be much shorter

 

[Darth Scandalous]

I guess I haven't noticed an effect directly with regards to general soreness. But I am a firm believer in a pinch of snus (applied topically) for bee stings and bug bites.

 

[Benzadmiral]

I guess I haven't noticed an effect directly with regards to general soreness. But I am a firm believer in a pinch of snus (applied topically) for bee stings and bug bites.

We always heard and read about the old-timers out West slapping a wad of chewing tobacco onto a snake bite to "draw out the poison."

 

[StlEd]

Nicotine is a vasoconstrictor, can reduce inflammation, and can relieve some symptoms of arthritis.

Frontiers | Nicotine in Inflammatory Diseases: Anti-Inflammatory and Pro-Inflammatory Effects

As an anti-inflammatory alkaloid, nicotine plays dual roles in treating diseases. Here we reviewed the anti-inflammatory and pro-inflammatory effects of nico...

www.frontiersin.org

Based on the definition by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health in the USA (2019), arthritis is any disorder that affects the joints, including joint pain and stiffness, usually accompanied by redness, warmth, swelling, and decreased range of motion of the affected joints, which typically worsens with age. There are >100 types of arthritis. The most common types of arthritis are rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis Nicotine tends to exert positive effects on rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.

 

[Fordfather]

There was once a series of "expert" articles opining that coffee was bad for you. So were eggs and red meat. The cycle has come back around to "beneficial" on those (at least the coffee and eggs).

I don't believe that the "experts" take the DNA of a test subject into account. Our genetic "portfolio" has a huge impact on our susceptibility to disease and our lifespan. There are stories of physically fit people who have had heart attacks in the middle of mild workouts, or non-smokers who have contracted lung cancer. There are uncounted numbers of outdoorsy folks that have never contracted skin cancer.

My grandfather started smoking at the age of 13. He smoked every day, up until smoking killed him.

He broke his leg, at 95 years of age, when he tripped on a floor mat at a convenience store while he was attempting to purchase cigarettes. He was hospitalized in order for the rod in his leg to implant with the broken bone. He was less active and caught pneumonia and COVID. He'd probably still be alive if he hadn't "stumbled" in for a pack of smokes

 

[mr_trent]

. . . I've noticed that on the non-workout days, when I have a pipe -- even a mild blend -- with coffee, not even including an over-the-counter pain pill, I soon feel much less soreness compared to when I get up. The leaf helps to wake me up; but it also seems to reduce the soreness in shoulder and back.

The coffee might be part of the equation. It's apparently good for arthritis/joints.

 

[Columbo]

The coffee might be part of the equation. It's apparently good for arthritis/joints.

I'll attest to that. If by only holding the warm cup in my tight morning fingers.

My whole body loosens up after that first cup and pipe.

 

[Benzadmiral]

I'll attest to that. If by only holding the warm cup in my tight morning fingers.

My whole body loosens up after that first cup and pipe.

As has mine this morning, with some Cafe Bustelo espresso blend (made mildly in my drip coffeemaker) and some Early Morning Pipe. The combo really works. Never mind the Omega XL stuff that John Walsh advertises on Grit and other broadcast channels. (I'd give it a try -- but they want you to subscribe for regular shipments. No way until I try it and see if it works.)

 

[Columbo]

As has mine this morning, with some Cafe Bustelo espresso blend (made mildly in my drip coffeemaker) and some Early Morning Pipe. The combo really works. Never mind the Omega XL stuff that John Walsh advertises on Grit and other broadcast channels. (I'd give it a try -- but they want you to subscribe for regular shipments. No way until I try it and see if it works.)

Now if someone offered regular subscription shipments of pipe tobacco ...

Let's not give TP and SP any more email ideas.

 

[ctr]

Now if someone offered regular subscription shipments of pipe tobacco ...

Let's not give TP and SP any more email ideas.

Actually, I asked them 5+ years ago to create a pipe tobacco of the month subscription. SP had mild interest but did not pursue it any further.

 

[ctr]

A lot of carbs the prior day increase the morning stiffness. I'm one of those folks who likes to work a while before eating breakfast or having caffeine. Some mornings I fast until noon or later. According to some medical evidence this is healthier as it doesn't increase the normal wakeup glucose and hormone cocktail the body kicks off.

 

[Columbo]

A lot of carbs the prior day increase the morning stiffness. I'm one of those folks who likes to work a while before eating breakfast or having caffeine. Some mornings I fast until noon or later. According to some medical evidence this is healthier as it doesn't increase the normal wakeup glucose and hormone cocktail the body kicks off.

Other than the coffee, I tend to live similarly. The most I can normally stomach for breakfast now is a single poached egg, and that increasingly becomes brunch.

Being well-racked with joint stiffness at this point, the things I have found that work best on it are two natural anti-inflammatories: eating more fish (plenty of salmon in particular), and the old New England farmer's constitutional tonic ... apple cider vinegar and honey, with ginger or turmeric thrown in. The latter makes me feel better generally, and goes down nicely in a cup of hot water.

But I must have that morning coffee, and the pipe that goes along with it.