Smoking and oral health

I was originally going to post this on the lifestyle board, but since we aren't exactly talking about smoking there, I figured I’d drop it here in the health PDF instead.
To give you some context, this is actually the name of an elective course at a dental school over in Washington, D.C. Honestly, when I first heard the title, I couldn't stop laughing for a good half hour, so I just had to come here and share the absurdity with you all. I mean, seriously, what were they thinking?? 🤣🤣Couldn't they have just called it "Cigarettes" or maybe "Nicotine and Oral Health"? Or if they really wanted to include smoking, why did they feel the need to bundle "oral" into the same title? It feels a bit redundant, doesn't it?

That being said, I would love to pivot toward a more serious discussion on the subject if everyone is up for it. If this is an official course title at a prestigious university, then it’s certainly a valid topic for our health section too. So, how much damage does smoking actually do to your oral health and teeth?

First off, you're looking at some seriously foul breath. If you smell it, something is definitely wrong. And right on its heels comes oral cancer.

Ugh, that’s just awful.
I’m tossing my cigarettes straight into the trash right now. ☕

Harold Anderson3 said:Yeah, that’s nasty.
I'm tossing my cigarettes in the trash right now. ☕

Just Google "smoking and oral health."
Smoking wreaks havoc on every aspect of oral health—and yes, "oral" is a perfectly valid medical term, whether you believe it or not. It leads to compromised wound healing, increased risks of periodontitis, inflammation around implants (peri-implantitis), and various mucosal issues, including tumors.

Of course, there’s no debating that smoking is terrible for oral health; honestly, it's basically just poisoning your entire body from the inside out. You really can't find a worse way to go about it.
So, here’s my question: is it actually possible for certain foods—and if so, which ones—to be just as damaging to your mouth as smoking is? I’ve also heard that heavy drinking can lead to tongue cancer, and I was wondering if high-proof spirits, maybe something like a strong bourbon, are particularly bad for you?

Harold Anderson3 said:So, apparently, there’s an actual elective course at a dental school in Washington, D.C. called this. When I first heard the name, I lost it—just sat there laughing for half an hour before deciding I had to share the absurdity with you guys. Like, wtf?? 🤣🤣Why couldn't they just call it 'cigarettes' or 'nicotine' and oral health? Or if they have to mention smoking, why cram 'oral' into the same title? It’s ridiculous.

Honestly, the fact that you're just sitting there cracking jokes and acting shocked by a course title says a lot about you..
What a joke. Seriously, how old are you?
What's actually the big deal with a name like 'smoking and oral health'?

Maria Reyes35 said:I think the fact that you find this so funny—acting all shocked and making such a big deal out of how an object is named—actually says quite a bit about your own perspective..
It’s honestly kind of wild how much you're overreacting here... I have to wonder how old you actually are.
What exactly is the issue with calling it 'smoking and oral health'?

Look, I really wasn't looking for a lecture, and I certainly wasn't looking for a parenting session either. I'm old enough that my mom 😉