as I’ve been saying for years…

A new study shows that cigarette smoke can prevent allergies by decreasing the reaction of immune cells to allergens.

I’ve smoked for 54 years and have never found anything I was allergic to, while almost everyone around me has become allergic to more and more substances. I’ve asked many smokers about their allergies, and found out that it isn’t just me. My assumption has been that smokers have stronger immune systems, so are less affected by alien substances.

I think it is more than just not-smoking that has led to increased allergic reaction. Modern humans have become fearful of so many things that could be harmful. Although scientists know better, other organizations seeking political power and/or donations have pushed the idea that if a substance is harmful at some dosage level, then it is harmful at any dosage level. Thus, because extreme exposure to sun can occasionally cause skin cancer, then any exposure should be avoided. Many people now believe that laying outside to tan (or even in a tanning bed) is a foolish flirtation with cancer. If trans-fat isn’t good for you, then you should avoid it completely. The list goes on and on.

I recall that, a few years ago, new homes were being built tightly, to conserve energy, resulting in no fresh air, and making residents sick until they starting piping in fresh air to their cooling systems. Even pets have become sicklier, as their owners have eliminated one pollutant after another.

In the U.S. we are extreme about what we fear. All of our food products are now freshness-dated, and many people simply throw food away when it passes the date… even when it still looks and smells fine. Guess whose idea that was? Follow the money.

Pseudo-science has turned Americans into frightened pansies who are losing their natural resistance to alien substances. The human body can develop resistance to almost anything harmful, if it has to, but when we artificially isolate ourselves from the natural world, we become weaker and more vulnerable.

Doesn’t it also seem likely that, if you develop an allergy, and medicate to lessen the symptoms, that you have made yourself even more dependent on the medication… and more vulnerable to the allergic reaction?

School teachers are a good example of immunity. In a typical elementary classroom, one or more children have a cold almost every day, so teachers are exposed continuously. Given the normal fear of most people, teachers should be sick continuously… but they’re not. Over time, they develop an immunity to the constant barrage of germs.

There are lessons to be learned from these examples. Americans used to be tough folks, working in dirty jobs, living in less clean environments, and over half the population smoked cigarettes… unfiltered ones. Now the air is cleaner, our home environments are far cleaner, only about 20% of us smoke and almost never indoors, yet we have become a sickly, overweight population.

We used to eat anything that tasted good or was cheap. We didn’t much know or care what was in it or how it was processed. Are we healthier now? Hell no, we’re not.

Health care costs have skyrocketed, a higher percentage of us are suffering from dementia, childhood asthma is rampant, and clinics and hospitals are constantly hiring.

When are we going to question the advice that has been pushed on us?