cancel
Showing results for 
Show  only  | Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

Share your quitting journey

Hookah use may cause health issues

Thomas3.20.2010
0 0 2

A hookah is a popular device used to inhale tobacco products, but some fear the water pipe can cause health issues.

Using a water pipe to inhale and puff tobacco is considered trendy, but researchers say using a hookah can lead to serious health issues. "From what we have done, the main danger associated with water pipe smoking, it's not very far from those associated with cigarettes," said Dr. Wasim Maziak of Florida International University.

Dr. Maziak spent years studying the dangers of hookahs. In his research, Maziak discovered that levels of carbon monoxide inhaled during an hour-long hookah session can equal that of smoking 100 cigarettes.

Maziak thinks hookahs are more toxic than cigarettes but are just as addictive. "Not only does it contain nicotine," he said, "we have done clinical studies where we have shown that if you abstain from hookah smoking for a while, then you will experience the same withdrawals or cravings that you would see with cigarettes."

According to Maziak, hookah use has become increasingly popular among high school and college students; hookah bars and lounges have popped up in and near college towns and offer nearly every flavor of tobacco on the market.

FIU student Bianca Englar said she tried smoking from a hookah for the first time while in high school. "Everyone else did it, so of course I tried it," she said.

Englar was not a fan of the hookah, however, and said she probably will not try it again. "It wasn't anything special. To me, I didn't really like it," said Englar. "It made me honestly really light-headed, really hot, kinda like smoking a cigarette."

 

Maziak said with prolonged use, hookah smokers may develop an addiction to nicotine. "A lot of people think it's a safer alternative to cigarettes, but at the same time, it will hook people to nicotine, and it will lead to cigarette smoking and will expose the smokers to a lot of the same kind of toxins that are in cigarette smoke," said Maziak.

Dr. Maziak calls the rampant use of the hookah "a global epidemic" and is hoping new policies will be implemented to raise awareness.


About the Author
63 years old. 20 year smoker. 11 Years FREE! Diagnosed with COPD. Choosing a Quality LIFE! It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. -Galatians 5:1