According to a recent study sheesha is a serious threat to the health of teenagers, especially the youngsters. This habit was found to be most common in the 17-25 years age group with 65 percent sheesha smokers being male and 35 percent females. There is another dangerous thing about sheesha and that is the use of prohibited and additive substances in more than 30 percent of sheesha outlets by owners or by smokers.
It can cause abnormalities and is a major threat to human life. One puff of the sheesha smoke contains more than 4800 active chemicals. Many of these chemicals are known to cause mouth and lung cancers, heart disease, respiratory and other diseases. According to a research of World Health Organisation the volume of smoke inhaled in an hour-long sheesha session is estimated to be the equivalent of smoking between 100 and 200 cigarettes.
Non-smokers, particularly pregnant women, babies, children and the elderly are at risk from breathing in sheesha smoke. Sheesha has become like a fashion in Pakistan and younger generation somehow find it more appealing than cigarettes, when it is known as more injurious to health.
Sheesha bars use some chemicals, sometimes even alcohol, in sheesha to make it more pleasant. In my opinion, the government has to do detailed legislation to ban such chemicals and ban sheesha. But we all know, when it comes to the implementation, nothing is practised as per law.
In the rest of the world, the younger generation doesn’t find it as appealing as in Pakistan as they are kept busy in other recreational activities by the governments.
FIZZA NAVEED
Lahore