Chain smoking

A chain smoker, literally, is a person who lights each new cigarette from the one he or she is just finishing. The term is most often used more loosely to describe people who smoke relatively constantly, though not actually "chaining".

True chain smokers are relatively uncommon, especially today. Before the 1960s, when the dangers of smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke were not well known, smoking was permitted in nearly all public places, allowing true chain smokers to live fairly typical lives. Today, with increasing prohibitions against smoking in public places around the world, true chain smokers would have to seclude themselves from such places. Additionally, with the known health risks of smoking, and the increased costs of tobacco products, many smokers have reduced their daily cigarette consumption.

However, the use of the term chain smoking is not restricted to those who are regarded as permanent chain smokers. While true chain smokers may be less common today, the act of chain smoking (ie. lighting a fresh cigarette immediately after the last one) is still widespread. Most habitual smokers feel a 'need' to smoke at regular intervals, but smoking prohibitions often mean that this need cannot be met. Many smokers will, therefore, smoke several cigarettes in a row when they are able to in an attempt to stave off the physical discomfort associated with nicotine withdrawal. In addition, many smokers will light up one cigarette after another as a way to combat stress or boredom, or because they are in a social situation where smoking is accepted, or even expected. However, smoking does not actually relieve stress. Cigarette smoking is actually stressful for the body. The "relief" a smoker feels from smoking a cigarette after a stressful event is caused by replenishment of nicotine levels in the bloodstream. ^{[citation needed]} This replenishment is needed because stress results in nicotine being drawn from the blood at a quicker rate. ^{[citation needed]}

Famous chain smokers include Walt Disney, John Wayne, Richard Burton, Humphrey Bogart, Yul Brynner and Omar Sharif, who all smoked five packs of cigarettes a day. ^{[citation needed]}

See also