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Wednesday, 05 March 2008 |
Dear Doc Yosef,
I am having some chronic sore throat, hoarseness, and sinus irritation. Could using a Hookah have any connection with these symptoms? I've been told that the water used in the hookah makes the smoke less irritating.
Thanks,
Edgy in Eggers
Dear Edgy,
You
have made a good and logical connection between the Hookah use and your
throat and sinus irritation. It's a myth that hookah smoking is milder
or safer than smoking cigarettes or weed.
Hookah is a water pipe. It is also known as “narghile, shisha, or goza.” The device has been used for
centuries in the Middle East and Asia to smoke tobacco. Now, hookah is popular across the United
States.
When a smoker inhales through the Hookah tube, a pressure difference forces air past the heating
source and heats the tobacco, which gives off smoke. The smoke is pulled away from the tobacco and
passes through the water and into the smoke chamber — from which it is inhaled by the smoker.
The smoke is no less toxic. Hookah smokers actually inhale more smoke compared to cigarette
smokers because of the massive volume of smoke they inhale. Although many believe that the water
in the hookah filters out all the "bad stuff" in the smoke, this isn't true. According to the World Health
Organization, a typical session of hookah smoking exposes the user to 100 to 200 times the volume of
smoke inhaled from a single cigarette. Even after passing through water, smoke still contains high
levels of toxic compounds, including carbon monoxide, heavy metals and cancer-causing chemicals.
Hookah smoking also delivers significant levels of nicotine which is the addictive substance in
tobacco.
The trend of hookah smoking has doctors and public health experts concerned because smoking from
a hookah is just as dangerous as smoking cigarettes.
Hope this information helps you and your friends make good health choices.
Do you need help stopping smoking? Contact the Wellness Center on campus or visit their Web site. Hit the “Smoking Cessation” side bar. There are ongoing, free, tobacco cessation classes going on now that you can benefit from. Or, call the N.C. Tobacco Use Quitline at 1-800-784-8669 for an awesome service that is designed to help you every step of the way. Student Health can also advise you about medications that may help you with your successful effort.
Wishing you good health,
Doc Yosef
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