A Hookah is a water pipe that originated in sixteenth century India and is also referred to as Shisha, Nargile (Narguileh), "Hubble Bubble", Nag, or Turkish water pipe. The hookah is a glass or metal water-pipe usually highly decorated and shaped somewhat like a bottle or small tank with a long, flexible cord pipe. In most hookahs, hot charcoal is placed on top of the tobacco to heat it. Transcultural Tobacco-2003

The use of hookah pipes is not a safe alternative to cigarette smoking. Smoking hookah pipes has been reported to cause oral, esophageal and lung cancer as well as heart disease, chronic bronchitis and of course, nicotine addiction.

Using a hookah to smoke tobacco poses a serious potential health hazard to smokers and others exposed to the smoke emitted.

In a one-hour hookah session, the waterpipe smoker may inhale as much smoke as a cigarette smoker would inhale consuming 100 or more cigarettes.

Hookah tobacco contains the same chemicals found in all tobacco, including nicotine. Secondhand hookah smoke contains the same cancer-causing particulates found in secondhand cigarette smoke.

The U.S. Surgeon General has stated that there is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke.

A Denver Youth Access working group is addressing the issue of Hookah Bars in the City and County of Denver. If you would like more information please contact Amber Leytem at 303-602-3678 or email Amber Leytem

Denver Hookah factsheet (PDF)

World Health Organization (WHO); Advisory Note on Waterpipe Tobacco Smoking. TobReg. 2005. (PDF)


American Lung Association TObacco Policy Trend Alert
An Emerging Deadly Trend: Waterpipe Tobacco Use (PDF)

Wikipedia encyclopedia on Hookah

American for NonSmokers' Rights Hookah Bars webpage

California's Clean Air Project CCAP fact sheet

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