Rare is the foreign tourist who leaves Egypt without a souvenir hookah. In addition to the pleasant fruity aroma of hookah tobacco, many are attracted to the shisha's 'glamour' and style, a unique smoking etiquette somewhat akin to the Japanese tea ceremony. Passing through the liquid in the device's base, the tobacco smoke is cooled, moisturized, and flavored. The liquid in the hookah also serves for filtration, and most of the harmful resins, impurities, and ash contained in the tobacco settle in the water. This, allegedly, makes shisha a far less harmful way of smoking. But experts have a different opinion.
'One hour of smoking hookah is equivalent to smoking several packs of cigarettes,' believes a specialist from the WHO regional office. Regularly smoking hookah, its enthusiast gets more nicotine and inhales more carbon monoxide and toxins than an ordinary smoker. Moreover, drawing on a shisha requires a strong 'pull,' and the smoke penetrates much deeper into the lungs.
According to a study conducted by the Egyptian Ministry of Health, hookah bears the main responsibility for the spread of tuberculosis in the country. It is worth noting that Egypt's dry climate does not favor the development of tuberculosis. However, the large number of patients with this dangerous disease can be explained precisely by the widespread fondness for hookah.
The Egyptian Ministry of Health intends to submit to parliament a bill on introducing a tax on the production of hookah tobacco. As Minister of Health Hatem al-Gabali stated, the new 'hookah tax' will bring over $100 million to the treasury, which will be allocated to health insurance.
ITAR-TASS