"Mr. Carlson went so far as to say that the pouches are
'like the hand of God reaching down and massaging your central nervous system.'... 'What the Make America Healthy Again movement is saying is, "I am going to question what I’m told," said [biohacking influencer Dave Asprey,] who has encouraged his followers to do their own research on and experiment with nicotine, which he calls one of 'Mother Nature’s cognitive enhancers.'... Another common refrain among MAHA supporters is that the medical establishment has made Americans sicker by suppressing information about natural cures and instead pushing prescription medications. That was the focus of an episode last year of the popular 'Culture Apothecary' podcast, titled 'Nicotine is NOT the Villain: What Big Pharma Hides from Parents.' Alex Clark, the podcast’s host and a leading figure in the MAHA movement, interviewed a chiropractor and alternative medicine practitioner who suggested that the drug industry had buried information on nicotine’s benefits and claimed that nicotine could treat Covid, cancer and more...."
From
"Influencers Are Spinning Nicotine as a ‘Natural’ Health Hack/The influencers, many of them aligned with the Make America Healthy Again Movement, say the medical establishment has unfairly demonized the compound" (NYT).
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29 comments:
I'm still stuck on the negative affects of Hack-D media.
If the NY Times went to the paint store, they would order paint with all the colors mixed in, resulting in a grey miasma of crud. That is how the article title sounds to me.
Am I wrong that nicotine in cigarettes is the addictive part (although also the part that gives you energy and sharpens your mind, claims that I don't think anyone questions)? It's the tar from inhaling burning tobacco that gives you cancer and heart disease... (But what part of oral tobacco use gives you mouth cancer? And how about pipe smoking, where I gather you don't inhale the tar into your lungs, but as it's still burning, might it still be the tar that produces mouth cancer? I honestly have never looked into it, but in both cases the danger could certainly be something other than the nicotine.)
I'm perfectly willing to be convinced that a nicotine product, delivered properly, could enhance focus and cognition. After all, there's a reason people enjoy smoking - and a reason every person in every squadron my dad was ever in was a smoker - that goes beyond the evil specter of peer pressure.
But it took the nicotine patch to enable my dad to quit smoking, despite years of his trying every other method and of his children begging him not to die on us. And now he has COPD. So while I'm willing to be convinced about nicotine, I still consider smoking to be a habit to run far and fast from.
I suppose it’s fun for NYT to equate Tucker Carlson and this other unknown guy as the voice of the Republican party but one only need pay attention here or elsewhere to conclude Carlson isn’t the darling of the tight he once was. We could play this game too with the left and I’d take the prop bet there are more nutjobs with crazy ideas in their camp, ma y of them at the top of their ticket…and if we expanded the crackpot ideas to economics every one of the leaders of their party is addicted to 19th century ideas the community rejected a century ago but here they are proclaiming vibrating belt machines and blod letting are the wave of the future…
I believe it's the nitrosamines in dip that causes mouth and other cancers. Consuming alcohol greatly enhances that risk.
While Zyn pouches don't contain tobacco related nitrosamines, The nicotine is really bad for your digestive tract causing bloating, stomach ache, nausea, etc. In more than half the users and can lead to gut dysbiosis and leaky gut syndrome.
There's no such thing as a free lunch
FYI, I smoked on and off for about 10 or 15 years then switched over to Copenhagen and Skoal. I quit doing dip 20 years ago using nicotine gum for a 2-month period where I tapered down very very gradually.
Influencers push all kinds of crap. This is not new. They usually have the mindset of a teenager in serious want of something. A want so great they will say or do whatever they have to in order to get that thing they want.
Tucker Carlson is no exception. For some reason, we just thought he might have been more adult than he is.
As for the 'medical establishment' well...there's this ditty from another influencer. Doctors told us....
Why is nicotine addictive?
Key neurotransmitters/chemicals released in excess include:
Dopamine: Responsible for the pleasurable, rewarding sensations and addiction.
Acetylcholine: Nicotine mimics this, stimulating nicotinic acetylcholine receptors to trigger other neurotransmitters.
Norepinephrine (Noradrenalin): Increases alertness and arousal.
Epinephrine (Adrenaline): Released from adrenal glands, raising heart rate and blood pressure.
Serotonin: Influences mood and produces sensations of relaxation.
Beta-endorphin: Contributes to pain relief and feelings of satisfaction.
Mayo Clinic News Network
Mayo Clinic News Network
+7
Tucker is certainly getting paid.
And Tucker should STFU. He's gone off the deep end. Hope he gets arrested for communicating with Iran. Useful idiot.
Is that John Stewart Trump is trying to heal?
Zyn is not Tucker Carlson’s brand. It’s ALP. There was some political brand issue he had with ZYN so he’s a founder of ALP.
How could NY Times get such a fundamental fact incorrect?
But then it’s the NY Times, isn’t it.
Tobacco and nicotine are harmful. That's been known for decades. Ignore those who push it. Tucker has indeed gone off the deep end in other ways. Ignore him.
I miss nicotine - when I think back on it. I do not miss smoking, which I miraculously quit almost 20 years ago. I say miracle because after trying to quit numerous times, the addiction simply went away one day. As far as I know, the only harmful aspect of nicotine is that it is highly addictive. It’s a great substance…calming and energizing at the same time. But I don’t think it’s harmful to the body. And I don’t know if, like other substances, over time you need to up the dosage. I was a low-dose smoker for years. It ramped up for me the last couple of years I smoked, but I think that was more about the actual habit (a bit of quiet escapism) than the addiction.
The full sentence about Tucker is: "Tucker Carlson, the conservative TV host and vocal MAHA ally who sells his own brand of nicotine pouches, has called the nicotine pouch brand ZYN a 'lifesaving' product that can increase productivity and 'male vitality.'"
I edited out the material about who's making money, but it's a BIG part of the article.
Just trying to make a reasonable excerpt.
I don't spend much time on it, but I do occasionally wonder why Tucker Carlson carries on so. He doesn't need the money, but I wonder how much is actually coming in, in his present mode. I don't think his beliefs are fueling any kind of passion - he's been in news broadcasting his whole life, as was his father, so his knowledge of how the business works must be comprehensive. This feels more like he's taking on angles to keep going. I wonder why. I don't know anybody that doesn't think he's a crank, so his audience shares must be dropping, that's my conclusion.
Don't assume the NYT is leaving something out when I'm doing an excerpt.
Zyn is very very popular in The Joe Rogan podcast. Manosphere. Tucker is actually very late to the party on this as per usual.
I think it's funny. Tucker Carlson has been a whiny bitch his entire career. You people used to love him but now that he turned against the Big kahuna President Blutarsky, You have turned against him with both barrels.
FYI, if you suggest that someone STFU, that is a primary indication that you are a CU next Tuesday.
I use Zyn and I like it. In my opinion nicotine itself isn’t that bad. Smoking is bad not because of the nicotine but because of the shit in the smoke. I monitor my blood pressure and Zyn has minimal effect. I am active and lift weights and bicycle and Zyn has had no effect on my performance. It does have the benefit of increased focus and appetite suppression. The appetite suppression help me get below 15% bodyfat which is a big plus in my book.
Caffeine is a stimulant that increases heart rate and blood pressure and is addictive as hell, but caffeine doesn’t get the same bad rap as nicotine because caffeine was never associated with a cancer and emphysema causing activity.
Nicotine is possibly the only addictive drug while also being incredibly toxic. It does have a clear psychoactive effect, but only after you have forced yourself to use it enough times that your nicotinic receptors are unregulated and you have the beginnings of an addiction.
Nobody enjoys their first cigarettes -- flavored vapes and snus make the initial doses less uncomfortable. Totally pointless product which has almost certainly killed at least one person you knew.
I have smoked a grand total of one time in my life. HS guys camping at a friends lake lot. I went with the crowd and tried a cigarette. Ho Lee KATZ. That first (and last) nicotine blast was more than I ever wanted again.
Is there potential for "healthy" nicotine? I sure don't know. I do know that the primary delivery system, cigarettes, has horrendous long-term health effects.
"I am going to question what I’m told," said [biohacking influencer Dave Asprey,] who has encouraged his followers to do their own research.....
This is not really a controversial statement.
No, you can't do your own clinical trials, but you can read and listen to what people other than The Proper Authorities are saying.
The research on caffeine is generally 'neutral' -- particularly for levels found in no more than 2 cups of brewed coffee per day.
Any bad effects of caffeine may follow from the other compounds in chocolate, tea, and coffee -- not caffeine per se. If I take caffeine pills the effects wear off like clockwork (~4 to 6 hours). Not so with the other sources.
Coffee is likely better than Zyn:
Yes, strong coffee stimulates neurotransmitters primarily by blocking adenosine receptors and increasing the release of dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin. Caffeine acts as a central nervous system stimulant, reducing drowsiness, boosting cognitive function, and improving mood by forcing the release of feel-good and alertness-related chemicals in the brain.
Facebook
Facebook
+5
Strong coffee does not typically cause gut dysbiosis; in fact, moderate consumption generally supports a more diverse, healthier gut microbiome due to its prebiotic and polyphenol content. However, excessive consumption (over 4–5 cups) can cause discomfort, and its acidity may trigger symptoms for those with pre-existing conditions like IBS or gastritis.
Northwestern Medicine
Northwestern Medicine
+4
Tucker Carlson has nothing to do with the MAHA movement. In fact, Tucker Carlson has nothing to do with MAGA anymore, either.
It's really weird how the Progressives keep tying to tie MAHA to neuropathic and homeopathic medicine. For most of my life it was the progressives who railed against Big Pharma, Big Medicine and junk food diets. Now they've thrown a cornerstone of their belief system in the trash because of their TDS. It's like the saying about the TDS crowd: "If Trump said that breathing was good for people, they'd all put plastic bags over their heads."
Nicotine is possibly the only addictive drug while also being incredibly toxic.
Fentanyl, opium and it's derivatives, meth, alcohol.
Not advocating for nicotine use, but if it was pointless it wouldn't be so popular. You stated, "It does have a clear psychoactive effect".
People like those effects, people want those effects. Many find them beneficial and highly enjoyable.
You can certainly argue it isn't worth the risk, but it's not pointless.
and which companies advertise in the Times
Nobody is using a can a week after their habit is established. The end-state of a snus-user (and these 'pouches' are just snus-for-kids) is around a can a day. ≈20 pouches per can, most people end up popping in a fresh snus every hour or so.
It is absolutely targeted at kids. They know what they are doing, the tobacco companies own research shows that you can't get a life-time customer from someone that starts the habit after 20, and we know that's because nicotine exposure during the brains development causes a lifelong reduction of risk-avoidance behaviour. It's necessary to get kids addicted to ensure that a solid customer base.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1043661823000725
In actuality it increases impulsivity and reduces effort, as you would expect from a CNS stimulant. And that's when you are undergoing the intense, chronic effects. The benefits are lost over time and obviously you cannot focus without it. Anyone who has spent time with someone going through withdrawal would know that.
And of course, withdrawal is essentially a constant state, just staved off over and over again with another pouch....
Most importantly, just because snus is less damaging than cigarettes, does not mean it's harmless. There are numerous negative health effects (dentally it's a nightmare with all the sugar), but the real elephant in the room is the incredibly powerful addiction. Those who have made the journey away from all kinds of 'hard' drugs and alcohol, they all cite nicotine as the most difficult thing to quit.
The manosphere is going to manosphere.
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