Originally published August 6 2005
Hookah smoking is on the rise among teens
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Younger people have started ditching their cigarettes and smoking from Hookahs instead, leaving health professionals worried about its danger.
The 18-year-old from Danville, Calif., enjoys getting together with his friends regularly to use a hookah, a practice he picked up during his freshman year of college at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
From urban lounges to suburban poolsides, smoking tobacco concoctions from hookahs - water pipes that originated in Turkey more than 500 years ago - is getting more popular among young people across the United States.
However, health professionals are concerned that, despite the claims of young users, smoking from hookahs is just as dangerous as smoking cigarettes.
"People, especially kids, think that because hookah smoke is water-cooled and filtered it is safe, but that's not true," says Serena Chen, executive director of the American Lung Association of California's east San Francisco Bay Area.
She busts a popular myth bandied about by young smokers by citing a recent study from the American University in Beirut that determined, in comparable studies with cigarettes, that hookah smoke contains significant quantities of the same chemicals that make cigarette smoke harmful.
It's hard to call something that's been around for 500 years a fad, but even longtime smokers - like Adnan Abusharkh, owner of San Francisco's Pride of the Mediterranean cafe and hookah bar - say it has been gaining popularity in the past few years, especially among young people.
Known for their elaborate decorations and flavored tobacco - usually mixed with fruit, molasses and honey - hookah pipes are a common item in Middle Eastern homes.
If he does, chances are many of his customers will be people like Chris Paizis, who just finished his freshman year at Chapman College in Southern California.
Like MacFarlane, both Deguzman and Paizis were turned on to hookahs the way many young people learn about the new "in" thing: from friends at college.
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