Blog@GraceJunction

Some years ago when youngsters would be free and would want to unwind themselves, they would meet up with friends and have fun. The fun element would be derived from the various games they played, movies, music, lunch or dinner at a good restaurant, or just simple chitchat at a coffee shop or an ice cream parlor. But today if you think that the usual hotspots would be one of the coffee shops or favorite restaurants, you may be wrong. Those are a bit outdated now. The latest ‘cool’ hangouts are hookah bars or restaurants offering hookah facility. The latest trend rampantly creeping in amongst the teenagers and youngsters is the hookah trend, which is mistakenly believed to have no health implications. A new tobacco fad to attract the youngsters it seems. Another challenge for the government and anti tobacco campaigns trying to curb tobacco usage and smoking. So hookah trend is in. Is it in to devour the moralities, valuable time, health,talent and parents’ money or is just an instrument to relieve stress or a mere substitute for cigarettes?

What is a hookah used for anyway? Is it trendy? A cultural tradition, social activity or a substitute cigarette vice? A hookah, shisha or narghile is a water pipe used to smoke sweet-flavored tobacco. It can also be used to smoke other drugs as well.

The pipe itself can be 2 or 3 feet tall with a number of hoses. The shredded tobacco is usually flavored with honey, molasses or fruit, and the blended choices are endless, making it appealing and smooth. Hookah began as a traditional Middle Eastern shared-cultural experience. Hookah was smoked for social reasons and on special occasions.

Today, college students go to hookah bars to socialize and relax. There are people who go to hookah bars and smoke to get rid of anxiety and trepidation. Some of the teenagers say that at the end of a stressed out day, smoking hookah acts as a stress reliever. Another reason for the increasing popularity of hookah usage is the popular perception that it is not as harmful as smoking cigars or cigarettes.

So what is it that attracts the youngsters to hookah bars again and again? The sweetness of the tobacco and the social factor attract 18- to 24-year-olds, according to the American Cancer Society’s 2004 annual report. With sweet flavors available for hookah smoking — such as apple, mango, cappuccino and even Coca-Cola - doctors are particularly worried about teen addiction. They said adolescents who otherwise might not try cigarettes might give the sweet hookah a try.

I have heard people going to hookah bars appreciating the sweet flavors and the certain trance that they go into after smoking hookah for some time. It seems to give them the highs and helps to ease out nervousness and anxiety. Well as far as my knowledge goes, intake of drugs also has the capacity to throw a person into a temporary trance, one of the major factors leading to addiction. This may be an alarm bell for the smokers who assure themselves that there is no nicotine, addiction factors or other harmful effects of smoking hookah.

Some students believe that the water in the pipe absorbs the chemicals found in the tobacco and is harmless, or at least less harmful and addictive than smoking cigarettes. They even rely on the belief that it would not cause them much harm, as the carbon dioxide released by the tobacco would combine with water to form harmless carbon dioxide, which actually aids digestion. Well, we do we have young doctors and advisers coming up at a very early stage. But is their advice and minimal research reliable or is it just a weak attempt to defend their hookah habits??

Getting into the core of the matter, in a hookah pipe, coals heat the tobacco. The smoke from the tobacco then passes through tubes and water to cool the smoke by the time the person inhales.

New evidence suggests that the burnt coal is the most harmful. They say one bowl is equal to a pack of cigarettes. So I think we can stop considering hookah as a safer substitute for cigarettes.

Some hookah smokers say, “Since the tobacco passes through the water, there aren’t as many toxins.” Well there aren’t as many toxins, but still there are toxins. This is like telling a soldier that you may not lose both of your legs in the war but you may lose one. So the risk still prevails.

For those who consider the ‘minimal’ tobacco used in hookah as harmless, here is an interesting real life story, which I picked up from one of my favorite books: ‘The Power Of Positive Imaging’, by Norman Vincent Peale. In this book the author writes:

“I was reading a book by my friend Art Linkletter, the TV personality. Art doesn’t touch tobacco and in the book he told why. When he was still just a youngster he got a job as a welder. A lot of the older welders chewed tobacco or dipped snuff and – wanting to be of the boys – young Art was ready to either or both. But one of the welders, a big, tough fellow, said, “let me show you something, son. Take off your shoe and sock.” When Art did, the man stuck a big wad of tobacco between two of Art’s toes. “Now put your shoe and sock back on,” he said, “and see what happens”. Within a short time, Art began to feel ill. Before long he was desperately nauseated. The chemicals in the tobacco have invaded his whole system through the skin between his toes. And Art wrote: “At that moment I decided I was never going to smoke.”

And he never has.”

Now that was pure chemical cause and effect. The interaction of mind and body is subtle, but real. So for those who are under the false impression that a bit of tobacco alone can do nothing should reconsider their thinking pattern as we all are no super humans that nothing can affect our bodies.

Hookah smoke contains large amounts of poisons and chemicals such as nicotine and carbon monoxide. Smoking this tobacco can lead to bronchitis and emphysema, along with heart disease. Further, a report by the Mayo Clinic states that the water-filtered tobacco contains high levels of toxins such as carbon monoxide and heavy metals, which are surely not recommended for our bodies. According to the Mayo Clinic’s Web site, tobacco - regardless of the form - can be addictive and can lead to nicotine dependence. According to a study published by the American University in Beirut, hookah smoke contains 100 times the amount of lead compared to regular cigarettes. A new study in the November issue of the Journal of Periodontology says hookah smoking is just as bad — or even worse — than cigarette smoking for users’ teeth.

The smoke passing through water may even remove some toxins, but according to the World Health Organization, a hookah session lasting an hour is equivalent to 100 to 200 times the volume of smoking one cigarette. Dr. Loffredo, director of cancer genetics and epidemiology at the Georgetown University Medical Center, claims that amount is equivalent to a pack of cigarettes.

The misconception among young people that hookah is not harmful has left many health officials alarmed. When teenagers smoke hookah, they are not only harming their body; they are breaking the law as well. Tobacco usage, regardless of form, is still illegal for minors in all cases. Regardless of the health consequences and illegality issue, teenagers still continue to smoke hookah when they need to relax. Seems as if all other healthy modes of relaxation are on exile. But these kids should not look up to chemicals to ease their thoughts. They don’t NEED it. It’s a waste of time, money and energy.

Time management, hobbies, sport activities, meeting up with friends just for fun, communication, social work, helping out at home, just relaxing in nature, reading a good book, watching a good movie or television show, or simply spending some time alone or with family,etc are more constructive ways of dealing with stress. So there are enough healthy ways to relax and ease out.

Besides, one of the main reasons that hookah should be avoided is that inhaling anything but the air we breathe is BAD. Our bodies aren’t made to absorb smoke or “steam.” If we are wise enough to cover our nose and mouth in a polluted, dusty or a smelly place, then we would be considered fools if found convincing ourselves that smoking hookah is harmless. Hookah smoking is simply a selfish and harmful habit.

People should realize that they are gifted by God with a healthy yet delicate mind and body and a specific purpose in life. So instead of sitting idly in a hookah bar and smoking away aimlessly, like a ship without a rudder, it is better to discover oneself and use oneself for better things in life. So it is important to know what drives you, hookah or life’s purpose and other beautiful aspects of life? Let us not take undue advantage of God given freedom to harm our carefully and beautifully designed mind and body. Bible says: “A life devoted to things is a dead life, a stump; a God shaped life is a flourishing tree.” So please don’t smoke your life away.

Tags: Cancer, Harmful effects of Hooka, Hooka Addiction, Smoke

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 12th, 2008 at 2:49 pm and is filed under Addictions, Fashion, New Findings, Spandan, Stress, Trends, Troubles & Problems. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.