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Hooked on Hookahs
Within the last few years, hookah use, which originated in the Middle East and Asia, has been sweeping across America. A hookah is an oriental tobacco pipe. It has a long flexible tube connected to a container where the smoke is cooled by passing through water. Hundreds of Arabian style hookah cafes, which offer hookahs for rent, along with a wide selection of flavored tobacco at inexpensive rates, have sprung up in university towns, inner cities, and wherever young people gather. Although many states forbid smoking tobacco in public places and selling tobacco to minors, some hookah bars have circumvented existing laws by switching to herbal concoctions.
“No nicotine, no tobacco!” read the ads, “It’s healthy!” But although exotic herbal flavors like hibiscus, eucalyptus, or rose may sound healthy, smoking them is something else. Just because herbal smoke is, well, herbal, doesn’t make it safe. Herbal smokers face respiratory problems just like any other smokers. Just the same, online chat groups, blogs, and forums, along with newspaper and magazine ads, continually target young people. To hookah pushers, money talks. Who cares about your health?
Higher Risks
Hookah smokers face added risks. Even though the bubbly water and the extended hose may absorb or dilute some of the tobacco’s harmful effects, kids tend to smoke and socialize together for hours on end. So everyone in the room, even those who prefer not to indulge, is exposed to hours of unhealthy secondhand smoke. The American Lung Association has found that smoking a hookah is at least as toxic as smoking cigarettes, if not more. This is because users may inhale as much smoke as consuming 100 cigarettes—in a single extended session. But that’s not all. The material used to burn the tobacco, such as wood chips or charcoal, also releases potentially dangerous chemicals, many of them carcinogenic (cancer causing), into the air, adding to the toxic mix. Finally, when hookah smokers share a mouthpiece, they share much more than leisurely conversation and a pleasant, smooth smoke. They also share germs. Users run the risk of contracting communicable diseases, such as tuberculosis and viruses.
Etai, who began experimenting with hookahs in high school, knows firsthand. “At first it seems cool. Hookah tobacco, water-bubbled and filtered through a long tube, is relaxing and very sociable. You can make a lot of friends around a hookah. But beware. I thought that hookahs were safer than cigarettes. But I was wrong. Tobacco is tobacco.”
When it comes to tobacco, nonsmokers may be in danger too. Those who routinely socialize with smoker friends breathe in unhealthy passive (secondhand) smoke. During smoke-filled parties or hookah get-togethers, non-smokers often inhale the smoke of hundreds of cigarettes at a time. Long-term exposure to passive smoke can lead to the same health risks as active smoking. To protect the public, many authorities now designate nonsmoking areas or forbid smoking altogether in public places.
Don’t Start
According to The American Heart Association, “tobacco use remains the single most preventable cause of death in the United States.” Teens who reach their eighteenth birthday without smoking, reports the U.S. Attorney General, will probably never smoke at all. Don’t start.
Never Too Late To Stop
If you already smoke, it’s never too late to stop. According to The American Cancer Society, quitting smoking has immediate, major health benefits. Since long-term health risks decrease as the number of tobacco-free years increase, the earlier you quit, the better. For teens, with their whole lives ahead of them, it’s a win-win deal.
If you or someone you know wants to stop smoking, get help. Take a look at www.smokefree.gov, which offers free information and counseling. Ask your doctor about medications that suppress nicotine cravings. When it comes to tobacco, quitters are winners.
Etai is now older and wiser. “It’s fun to share a hookah with friends, kicking back, relaxing, sitting in a dark room for hours and discussing everything under the sun. But you and your friends can discuss everything under the sun in the sunlight. You don’t need a hookah to do that.” Etai no longer smokes.
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