Health Warnings Over Rises in Shisha Bars

Today is No Smoking Day, and several newspapers have highlighted the growing concern of the rise in shisha cafes and the lack of health awareness of the harm they can cause.

Data from the Freedom of Information (FoL) taken from 133 local authorities in major cities around the UK shows that the number of shisha cafes/bars have increased by 210 percent since 2007.

Smoking shisha has become a fashionable pastime for many young people falsely believing it to be safer and less harmful than smoking cigarettes.  However, strong evidence suggests that a typical one hour session of smoking shisha is equivalent to inhaling the same amount of smoke as from more than 100 tobacco cigarettes. 

The Medical Director of the British Heart Foundation Dr Mike Knapton said that waterpipe smokers should not be “duped by the sweet and wholesome sounding fruity flavours, if you use shisha you are a smoker and that means you’re putting your health at risk.”

Shisha smoking is linked to the same kinds of diseases as cigarette smoking including heart disease, cancer, respiratory disease and problems during pregnancy.  However there are added risks because you often smoke it for a greater length of time than you would a cigarette and you are also exposed to toxins from the wood or charcoal used to burn the tobacco. 

Worryingly, statistics demonstrate that more than one in ten UK Adults (13 percent) continue to think that are no health harms from using shisha.  This could explain the subsequent rises in shisha users and the increase of shisha cafes around the UK.

Tobacco consumption has been linked to a high death rate worldwide with 5 million deaths each year and is considered to be the second major cause of death in the world that is completely preventable.

 

No Smoking Day is a great opportunity for anyone who smokes to try and quit.  However, thousands of quitters could be putting their health at risk by using shisha as an alternative.  More information needs to provided to people so they become educated and clued up on the high health risks associated with shisha.  

For further reading on the harmful affects of shisha smoking click here

If you are interested in quitting smoking or for further advice on the steps to help you stop smoking visit the NHS Choices Website