South Africa’s smokers are in dire straights currently, as the sale of tobacco products has been prohibited in the country for nearly two months now during the nationwide lockdown. This has resulted in smokers coming up with creative ways of getting their fix, or paying up to R200 to illegally procure a box of cigarettes.
More first-hand accounts of smokers being duped by those selling tobacco illegally are being shared on social media. One account that had smokers shocked detailed someone allegedly paying R1200 for a carton of Caesar cigarettes, only to find that each pack had been stuffed with paper instead of cigarettes.
Some smokers have been advising those who are going through nicotine withdrawals to smoke teas such as rooibos and green tea paired with Nicorettes to wean themselves off smoking, but does this really help or is it a placebo?
Those living in Vietnam have reportedly been smoking green tea for decades, and more South Africans are also beginning to roll the anti-oxidant-rich tea into makeshift smokes.
According to research, while teas are healthy to ingest via drinking, there is no yet enough research to prove whether or not smoking these teas is healthier than smoking tobacco.
While there is no research on the health benefits of smoking tea, its beneficial compounds may possibly be absorbed more quickly into the bloodstream through the lungs. But smoking, or inhaling anything burning, is generally unhealthy.
Some smokers have sworn not to give up too soon by finding a source to illegally purchase cigarettes during the nation-wide lockdown, and others have resigned to quitting.
Picture: Pixabay
