Reddit mentions of Food of the Gods : A Radical History of Plants, Drugs and Human Evolution

No link I'm afraid it's from a book called "Food of the Gods" by a guy called Terrence McKenna.

Link
to the amazon page if you want to buy.

Yes, it's harmful and I don't smoke (not for some moral reasons, actually, but as a smokers' kid I was never prohibited from it and also it was smelly and not interesting; besides, never was a popular kid, obliged by peer pressure to hang out in parks or cafes and smoke every class break or after school)...

On the other hand, there are lots of better fast stress-relievers, but just a few of them one can do at work in the post-industrial world, e.g. and just waste some time without messing the whole thing up. You can't drink at work, you usually can't play sports at work or have sex at work, so... Oh, well, here comes the internet addiction (hello Reddit!)... I read another point in Terence McKenna's "Food of the Gods" once and he compared today's caffeine and nicotine to the war drugs of Berserkers and Persians like mushrooms and haoma - some of them give us the qualities we need to deal with our small battles in everyday life, to be alert, tough and competitive. Many other companies benefit from our needs, vanity and addictions (food giants sell us tons of carbs and bad lipids, etc.); many conditions are medicalised and people taking all those sedatives and anti-deppressants - modern life is a shitty game after all, making it easier than ever to survive and hard to stay sane.

Edit: Book title and link.