Undoubtedly more chic, the chicha does not deserve its less harmful image than the cigarette, quite the contrary!
- In 2019, nearly a quarter of 18-75 year olds smoked daily.
- Smoking is responsible for more than 75,000 deaths per year in France.
It’s a fact, shisha or hookah is very popular among young people. But they would still be much more toxic than we thought, according to an American study. This way of smoking has a rather nice image, because it is linked to moments of relaxation and pleasure. That’s for side A, because side B is much darker…
A false reputation
The principle of chicha is simple: a piece of tobacco is placed at the top of a beautiful copper device, which a long pipe connects to the mouth of the smoker. During its journey, the smoke is cooled in a water tank. It is the freshness and the fragrant smell, generally fruity, that gives shisha this – false – reputation of less toxicity.
A puff of shisha represents the same danger as a cigarette… But in one hour, a smoker inhales an average of 40 times! It is therefore the equivalent of 2 packs of cigarettes that will pass through the lungs. And passive smokers are not spared: spending an hour next to a smoker in a shisha bar is like smoking six cigarettes.
A mixture of one quarter tobacco and three quarters molasses is smoked, which, when consumed, gives rise to particles as small as those produced by diesel and which go straight to the bottom of the lungs.
Carcinogens in the urine
A team of researchers from the University of California recruited healthy regular hookah smokers. They had to provide a urine sample before going to a shisha bar. A urine sample was collected the day after the experiment. The researchers found a high concentration of nicotine, and a lot of carcinogens. Even in urine samples taken 24 hours after the study, the levels still remained very high.
The breakthrough of shisha in France is impressive. Many bars have opened to allow customers to come and smoke safely. Among Parisians, 53% of those under 16 and 75% of those under 19 have tried it at least once. More serious: before starting to smoke cigarettes, teenagers often experiment with shisha. The fruity taste gives them, as with now banned flavored cigarettes, the feeling that hookah is safe.
No smoking in closed public places
The smoking ban applies to all places for closed collective use, and regardless of the nature of the establishment. However, it is possible to smoke shisha inside the establishment, only if it is equipped with a smoking room, respecting the provisions of the public health code. Finally, there are E-chichas as there are E-cigarettes that use the same processes as the electronic cigarette… but with a power multiplied by 10!
