Hookah smoking is a relatively new trend that has been gaining in popularity amongst teenagers and young adults. Unfortunately, many people are not aware of the dangers of smoking hookah. This is mainly due to the relatively new introduction of hookah’s into the US, minimal research, and lack of proper education on the matter. Cigarettes on the other hand, have been around a lot longer and many people are well aware of the negative effects it can have on one’s health. Additionally, there is a plethora of literature and scientific articles on cigarettes, the dangers, and the negative health effects. When it comes to cigarette smoking, people can name off many of the adverse health effects, such as lung cancer, heart disease and many others maladies. It is my hope that by the end of this article more people will be educated on what hookahs are, how they work, and the harmful effects they can have on one’s health. Hopefully by doing so, people will become as educated on hookahs as they currently are about cigarettes.
Hookah (also known as narghile, arghila, or shisha) is a water pipe which consists of a base, a long pipe, and a bowl at the very top. The base is usually filled with water but other liquids such as alcohol can be used as well. The bowl, which is placed at the top of the pipe, holds the flavored tobacco and is covered with a layer of aluminum foil. A coal is placed on top of the foil and it is used to heat the tobacco. The person smoking the pipe inhales deeply from a hose connected to the water pipe, whereupon the smoke from the top of the hookah is passed through the water basin and inhaled. Hookah smoking is usually done in groups and the mouthpiece gets passed from person to person. There are also many different variations and styles of hookahs available.
Hookahs originated in Middle Eastern countries and have been around for centuries. Unfortunately, there is now a big surge of hookahs use throughout the US. The reason hookahs have become so popular, is because participants can relax around the hookah “chilling out” while inhaling the “calming” smoke. There has also been a rise in the number of “hookah bars” popping up all over the US; especially close to college campuses as it has become a favorite amongst college students. Unfortunately this trend has become common among teenagers and students who travel abroad to learn in Israel. Many yeshivas in Israel have students with hookahs or they have easy access to one. Hookah smoking is very popular in Israel and indeed, Israel is where a lot of young adults get exposed to it for the first time. There is also quite a lot of peer pressure when it comes to smoking hookah. Teenagers feel that if they don’t smoke, they are not cool and are missing out on chilling with their friends. Studies of young adults have found the prevalence of hookah use among college students to be from 22% to 40%. In 2010, the Monitoring the Future survey found that among high school seniors in the United States, about 1 in 5 boys (17%) and 1 in 6 girls (15%) had used a hookah in the past year.
Although many users think hookah is less harmful than cigarettes, it actually has many of the same health risks as cigarette smoking does. To illustrate this, here are just a few wide held beliefs and actual facts about hookah smoking.
Belief #1: Most people believe that smoking hookah is actually safer than smoking cigarettes.
Fact #1: This is ludicrous, because hookah smoke is just as dangerous as cigarette smoke if not more. One study found that tobacco-free and tobacco-based waterpipe products exert substantial and similar deleterious effects on human lung cells and there is no reduced risk health risk than compared to cigarette smoking. Hookah smoke creates volatile aldehydes which are known to cause lung disease. In addition, the charcoal used to heat the tobacco can raise health risks by producing high levels of carbon monoxide, metals, and cancer-causing chemicals. Hookah tobacco also contains several toxic agents known to cause lung, bladder, and oral cancers. There are also higher risks of developing oral cancers due to the irritation caused by hookah smoke. Additionally, hookah smoke is known to contain higher levels of arsenic, lead, and nickel, 36 times more tar, and 15 times more carbon monoxide than one cigarette. Heart disease, infections, oral cancer, lung cancer, stomach cancer, esophageal cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) decreased fertility, and clogged arteries are just some of the possible adverse health effects.
Belief #2: There is a belief that the water somehow “filters” the tobacco and makes it safer to inhale, and since the water cools the smoke, it does not burn the lungs.
Fact #2: This is false because even after having passed through water, the smoke from a hookah has high levels of toxic and cancerous causing agents. This has been proven in many research labs. Water-filtered smoke can damage the lungs and heart just as much as cigarette smoke even though it may be slightly cooled.
Belief #3: Some people believe that Shisha tobacco contains fruit, so it is healthier than regular tobacco.
Fact #3: Although the tobacco is soaked and mixed with fruit, it still contains the same cancer causing chemicals as cigarettes do. Tobacco is tobacco no matter how you make it.
Belief #4: There is widespread belief that the nicotine contained in hookah tobacco is so minimal that it is not addicting.
Fact #4: Hookah smoking does deliver nicotine, a highly addictive drug, albeit at lower levels than cigarettes. However, this should not fool you because in the amount of time that you have one hookah session you are getting even more nicotine than you would, had you smoked a cigarette. The average cigarette takes 5 minutes to smoke and the smoker takes about 10 puffs. Each puff contains around 50ml of smoke so by the end of a five minute session, one inhales around 500ml of smoke. Compare that to hookah smoking; the average hookah session is 45 minutes and the smoker takes about 100 puffs. Each puff contains 500ml so each puff is about the same amount as if you smoked one cigarette. To put this into perspective, imagine buying a one liter soda bottle, the volume contained in that bottle is approximately equal to one cigarette. During a 45 minute hookah session, you are taking in the equivalent amount of smoke as one hundred one liter bottles of soda. This is because smoking a hookah requires taking longer and harder drags, subsequently increasing levels of inhaled nicotine and carcinogens in the lungs.
More and more researchers, scientists, and physicians are proving just how deleterious smoking hookah can be. The adverse health effects are numerous and serious. Armed with this knowledge, it is our duty to spread the word in the hopes that people will be as knowledgeable about hookah as they are about cigarettes. It is very easy to just live in the moment and not think about the injurious effects that smoking can have on our bodies in the long run. G-d gave us the commandment to “guard your lives well.” Our bodies are a product of what we put inside them and we must strive to only put good things in. It is much easier to pretend to be oblivious to the truth than to actually implement change. Finally, try to be encouraging, helpful and most of all non-condescending to people you know who smoke. If we each try to protect ourselves, our kids, our families and our friends; we will all be healthy to see each other until 120.
