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Hooked on hookah? Hope not, it may be more toxic than cigarettes

News Flash: smoking tobacco filtered through water is actually more hazardous than smoking tobacco filtered through a cigarette.

In the United States, 55 percent of hookah smokers are between the ages of 18 and 24, and almost 5 percent of high school aged students smoke hookahs. One idea behind the rise in hookah use among young adults is the belief water filtered tobacco is less addictive than smoking cigarettes, a contention some experts disagree with. Hookah use can impact your heart rate, blood pressure, and increases “your long-term risk for coronary artery disease.”

A recent study by the American Heart Association found that individuals smoking a hookah for just 30 minutes “tend to inhale liters of smoke filled with large quantities of hazardous matter at higher levels than cigarettes...” According to experts, time isn’t the only factor that makes hookahs as dangerous as cigarettes, “short-term exposure to carbon monoxide in hookahs is toxic as well.” In fact, hookah smokers showed higher levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) after just one session, than those smoking cigarettes.

The American Heart Association makes their position clear in recommending that individuals avoid using tobacco in any form. For more on this story from USA Today, follow this link: https://bit.ly/2EYVU78

To read the American Heart Association's complete scientific statement, click here: https://bit.ly/2tWUB25