Is It Safe to Be a Social Smoker?

The basics

Smoking in the U.S. has decreased over the last 20 years, but the number of people who smoke occasionally seems to be increasing. In fact, about 40% of adult smokers don’t smoke every day. Of these intermittent smokers, about 10% of them are considered social smokers.

Social smokers usually only smoke in certain social situations, like at bars or with friends, and they don’t normally smoke alone. Unlike regular smokers, social smokers may be motivated more by social factors rather than a true nicotine dependence.

Social smoking is becoming more popular. Studies show that about 20% to 80% of young adults who smoke are social smokers. 

People who smoke socially may not consider themselves smokers and may think their smoking habit is harmless. There is limited data to suggest that smoking less may be associated with fewer health problems, but any amount of smoking — no matter how little — is bad for your health.

Here’s a guide to social smoking, what it means for your health, and ways to help you quit. 

Are you a social smoker?

Intermittent smokers are generally defined as people who don’t smoke every day. Social smokers are considered one type of intermittent smoker — they don’t smoke every day and they usually don’t smoke alone. Social smoking usually happens in the context of certain social situations or triggers (like bars or drinking alcohol).

Anyone can be a social smoker, but it seems to be more common in young adults (especially college students). Social smokers are also less likely to consider themselves as smokers — or being addicted to cigarettes.

You may be a social smoker if you only smoke:

• With friends or in groups (not alone)

• At parties or bars

• While drinking alcohol

• To feel comfortable in social situations

• By getting cigarettes from others (not buying your own)

• On weekends, evenings, or at night

• In someone else’s house (not your own)

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What are the dangers of social smoking?

Any amount of smoking — even social smoking — exposes you to the dangerous effects of tobacco. Some social smokers continue to smoke socially for years, but others may transition into regular smoking. Whether you smoke a little or a lot, you’re putting your health at risk each time you smoke.

Here, we’ll review some ways that smoking is harmful to you and your body.

Nicotine

Cigarettes and other tobacco products contain nicotine. Nicotine is what makes cigarettes addictive (more on that below). But it also directly affects your body each time you smoke. Here are some of nicotine’s effects:

• Increases your blood pressure, heart rate, and breathing rate

• Narrows your arteries (the blood vessels that carry blood from your heart)

• Contributes to hardening of arteries

• Causes harmful effects on an unborn baby (like premature labor and respiratory failure at birth)

Tobacco addiction

One of the most dangerous things about tobacco is that it contains nicotine, which is highly addictive. Nicotine works on your brain and mood to get you hooked on tobacco.

Not all social smokers develop a cigarette dependence, but some studies show that social smokers (especially young adults) may transition into being regular smokers. A recent review of many studies on smoking estimates that two-thirds of people who try a cigarette just one time will go on to smoke cigarettes daily, at least for a period of time.

In addition to nicotine, cigarettes contain other compounds that make them more addictive, including:

• Bronchodilators, which expand your airways, making it easier for smoke to get into your lungs.

• Sugars and flavorings, like chocolate, which mask the smoke and make the cigarette more appealing.

• Acetaldehyde, a chemical that makes nicotine more addictive.

• Ammonia compounds, which increase how fast nicotine hits the brain. 

Other toxic chemicals

You may not realize it, but a cigarette has more than 7,000 chemicals in it. When you inhale, these chemicals can reach your brain and other organs within seconds after your first puff. Here are some examples of chemicals found in cigarettes that have been linked to different types of cancer:

• 1,3-Butadiene

• Arsenic

• Benzene

• Metals (like cadmium, chromium, and lead)

• Carbon monoxide

• Formaldehyde

• Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

• Tar

• Tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs)

Occasional smoking: Is it really that bad?

Smoking is bad for your health, whether you smoke a little or a lot. Occasional smoking may not be as bad for you as regular smoking, but it still causes serious health problems. It can also increase the likelihood that you’ll become a regular or heavy smoker.

How does occasional smoking impact your health?

Compared to non-smokers, studies show that occasional smokers have a higher risk of developing serious health conditions, including:

• Heart disease

• Cancer (lung, esophagus, and others)

• Harder time getting pregnant (reduced fertility)

• Cataracts

• Chronic kidney disease

What’s the difference between social smoking and regular smoking in terms of health impacts?

Studies show that social smoking and very light smoking are associated with many of the same diseases as regular smoking. Let’s look at some of the data: 

• One study found that self-reported social smokers have high blood pressure and cholesterol levels similar to people who report smoking regularly.

• People who smoke fewer than 10 cigarettes a day may be about 3 times as likely to die from respiratory disease and about 9 times as likely to die from lung cancer compared to non-smokers. 

• People who smoke less than one cigarette a day have more than a 60% risk of early death compared to nonsmokers. Smoking 1 to 10 cigarettes increases that to almost 90% compared to people who never smoked.

• Smoking about one cigarette a day increases the risk of developing heart disease and stroke. The risk associated with smoking this small amount is only about half the risk of smoking 20 cigarettes a day.

What about one cigarette a week? Is that OK?

No. Even one cigarette a week is bad for your health.

Each cigarette you smoke exposes you to nicotine and other harmful chemicals and increases your risk for heart disease and cancer. The negative effects of smoking add up over the course of your life.

There is no safe number of cigarettes, so the best choice is not to smoke at all. 

What about vaping? What amount of vaping is safe?

No amount of vaping — even social vaping — is safe. 

E-cigarettes are pretty new, so we’re still learning about their long-term health effects. But so far, studies show how harmful they can be. Here are some ways that vaping is bad for you:

• Almost all e-cigarettes contain nicotine. The amount of nicotine has been increasing and can be higher than in cigarettes.

• E-cigarettes contain many toxic and cancer-causing chemicals (like cadmium, diacetyl, and lead).

• Some vaping products that use THC have been linked to a serious lung disease called e-cigarette or vaping-use-associated lung injury (EVALI). We are still learning more about this, but many of the products that caused this condition came from informal sources, like friends and family. 

• People who vape have a higher risk of chronic cough, bronchitis, and asthma.

• Some data suggests that young adults who vape could be more likely to begin smoking regular cigarettes compared to those who don’t vape.

Why are people social smokers?

Social smokers usually don't consider themselves smokers and they may be motivated to smoke by different factors than regular smokers.

Here are some factors that may contribute to social smoking:

• Thinking it’s safer than regular smoking

• Having less of a stigma than regular smoking

• Feeling more comfortable or accepted in social situations

• Responding to certain social triggers (like a party or drinking alcohol)

• Having friends or family who smoke socially

How to quit being a social smoker

Social smoking is associated with certain social situations and triggers. If you’re trying to quit, a good first step is knowing when you smoke and what your possible triggers are. A good way to do this is to keep a journal of when and how you smoke. This can help you plan to quit smoking and to avoid those situations in the future.

Here are some additional steps to help you stop being a social smoker:

• Spend time with nonsmoking friends who share your interests.

• Ask a friend to discourage you from smoking in social situations.

• Spend more time in places where smoking isn’t allowed.

• Avoid alcohol for a few weeks (or longer) when you quit smoking.

• Avoid e-cigarettes and other tobacco products.

Keep in mind

Trying to quit smoking can be hard, whether you’re a social smoker or a regular smoker. If you want to quit smoking, using e-cigarettes to help you quit is not recommended. They have not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for this use and haven’t been proven to work in helping people quit.

There are many programs and FDA-approved products that can help you quit smoking. Talk to your healthcare provider or reach out to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to learn more about resources available to help you. 

Why trust our experts?

Written by:

Maria Robinson, MD, MBA

Maria Robinson, MD, MBA, is a board-certified dermatologist and dermatopathologist who has practiced dermatology and dermatopathology for over 10 years across private practice, academic, and telehealth settings. She is a fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology and the American Society of Dermatopathology.

Reviewed by:

Patricia Pinto-Garcia, MD, MPH

Patricia Pinto-Garcia, MD, MPH, is a medical editor at GoodRx. She is a licensed, board-certified pediatrician with more than a decade of experience in academic medicine.

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