AsianScientist (Feb. 10, 2012) – Of the growing number of businesses promoting hookah smoking on the Internet, fewer than one percent included a tobacco-related warning on their website homepage, says a University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
A hookah is an instrument used to smoke flavored tobacco by passing the fumes through a water basin. This technique was first practiced in India in the 16th century and is gaining popularity globally.
The study also found that, while cigarette-related web pages often are required to verify users’ ages, none of the hookah tobacco web pages required any type of age verification.
Lead author Prof. Brian Primack, associate professor of medicine and pediatrics at the Pitt’s School of Medicine, said many websites stated or implied that smoking tobacco through the pipes was safer than cigarette smoking. In fact, only 26 percent of the websites included the word “tobacco” somewhere on opening web pages.
“It’s believed that one session of smoking tobacco through a hookah can deliver about 50 to 100 times the smoke volume, 40 times the tar, and twice the nicotine usually delivered by a single cigarette,” said Dr. Primack.
“Hookah smoking has been linked to serious diseases like cancer and cardiovascular disease, and people should be aware of these risks,” he cautioned.
The researchers scrutinized 144 U.S.-based websites and coded them for their content and format.
Many of the hookah businesses had similar characteristics that glamorized hookah tobacco smoking as a fun, social activity: 79 percent served food, 41 percent served alcohol, 53 percent offered dancing, and 37 percent offered live music. Some also had a social media presence, with 31 percent having Facebook pages and 15 percent having Twitter.
“Many people seem to have the misconception there is no tar or nicotine associated with this type of tobacco use. I think we need to step up our educational efforts to help them understand what the risks may be,” Dr. Primack said.
The article can be found at: Primack BA et al. (2012) U.S. Hookah Tobacco Smoking Establishments Advertised on the Internet.
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Source: University of Pittsburgh.
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