New York: Hookah is dangerous, more so because its look and perception speaks of deception. Hookah has almost acquired a ‘cult’ status, and is becoming the life of many parties. But a researcher from Washington has warned that the hookah or the pipe is indeed a wolf in sheep’s clothing!
Dr. Christopher Loffredo, director of the Cancer Genetics and Epidemiology Program at Georgetown University Medical Center, indulged in a study that measured tobacco use in Egypt since 1997. He noticed a rising trend in the use of hookah amongst the youth in Middle East as well as in United States, contrary to belief, that smoking as a fad was the lot of the bigger cities. Alarmingly, many young Egyptian women were almost using the hookah like an accessory, encouraged by the ‘social appropabation’ it received, along with the widespread perception of being a mild form of the cigarette.Dr. Christopher Loffredo found that the genetic damage in the mouth tissue of hookah smokers was at par with that of cigarette smokers. He said, “The concern is that the session of smoking is very long. You’re sitting with friends, typically. That’s a lot of tobacco exposure in that time period. We’re worried that hookah smokers could become addicted and could either turn to cigarettes or daily use of hookah devices for tobacco.”
Source-Medindia
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