Hookah: a safer way to smoke?
Sophomore Helen Dainton and her group of close friends frequent the Egyptian Café in Broad Ripple. They can be found enjoying tea, Mediterranean cuisine and smoking tobacco from a hookah. The café and lounge is one of the few Indianapolis establishments where residents can go to smoke from a hookah, or water pipe, and many University of Indianapolis students take advantage of the opportunity.
Patrons of hookah lounges or hookah bars smoke flavored tobacco in a glass device through a hose. The smoke is cooled and filtered as it passes through water before being inhaled by the smoker. Tobacco flavors ranging from fruits such as apple or strawberry to more exotic tastes such as jasmine or mint are typical.
“I just really like the whole atmosphere at the Egyptian,” Dainton said. “I feel like the secondhand smoke isn’t bad there, and the food there is amazing.”
Hookah lounges have seen a spike in popularity in the United States in recent years, but the practice has been a mainstay in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cultures for centuries.
When senior Neysa Peterson was a student on the University of Indianapolis’ Athens campus, she was voted “Most Likely to Be Found in a Hookah Bar.” Peterson explained that in Greek culture, hookah has become an embedded part of their social habits and nightlife.
“I probably could have minored in hookah while I was there,” Peterson said, joking. “It was just so accessible and much more acceptable.”
Even back in her home city of Indianapolis, Peterson described the clientele of the hookah lounge scene as a very diverse bunch.
“Hookah is definitely an international activity,” Peterson said. “You see people from tons of cultures whenever you go [to a lounge.]”
Dainton explained that she and her friends like the hookah lounge scene because you can go there to socialize with your friends even if you aren’t 21 yet.
“It’s definitely a place you can hang with friends if you aren’t old enough to go to bars,” Dainton said. “We end up going a lot because there really isn’t much to do as far as nightlife for the under-21 crowd around Indy.”
Although Dainton and Peterson find advantages in this social activity, doctors at Mayo Clinic released a study last year about the harmful effects of this habit.
The research explained that hookah smoking can be just as harmful to one’s health as smoking cigarettes, and maybe even more harmful depending on how frequently one partakes.
The smoke also contains the addictive agent nicotine, which is found in cigarettes. Also, cancer-causing carcinogens are present in the smoke, just as in cigarettes. Richard Hurt, M.D. of Mayo Clinic also added that carbon monoxide exposure, heart disease and lung and oral cancers are risks posed by smoking tobacco, whether from a hookah or a cigarette.
“I think smoking anything is probably going to have negative effects,” Peterson said. “But I see hookah as an occasional social activity, not a habit, which I think makes it very different than [for] someone who smokes cigarettes.”
