Hookah or cigarette tobacco?

Hookah or cigarette tobacco?

Given the new trend of hookah smoking, the debate is served among smokers: hookah or conventional tobacco? Which of the two systems is less harmful? As there are opinions for all tastes, let's analyze both forms of smoking, and draw the appropriate conclusions.

Analysis and differences between cigarette tobacco and hookah

Let's see the main characteristics of these two forms of tobacco consumption:

The cigarettes

The cigarette smoker obtains nicotine by combustion. This means that the chopped tobacco burns directly, and the smoker not only inhales nicotine, but thousands of volatile components from burned tobacco.

These harmful components include carbon monoxide, various aldehydes, ammonia, lead, arsenic, benzenes and a host of substances that are harmful to health. The cigarette is a dangerous cocktail of chemical compounds, and its dangerousness does not admit of any doubt.

Hookah

In the hookah tobacco is not used directly, but molasses. Molasses is a mixture of tobacco and other moisturizing and flavoring ingredients. And it is that molasses is not intended to be burned, but heated to a very high temperature.

As no combustion occurs, the amount of harmful volatile components is greatly reduced compared to cigarettes. Also, the smoke and gas mixture passes through the water. Many think this causes the smoke to leak or purify, but that's just a myth.

These vapors are in the gaseous phase, and the only thing that happens is that the water cools them, causing the density of the smoke to be higher, so the smoke is more intense and fresh than when using a cigarette.

Is it worse to smoke hookah or tobacco with cigarettes?

Undoubtedly, cigarettes have more harmful components, so a first analysis of the situation may make us think that smoking cigarettes must necessarily be worse than smoking hookah.

But hookah tobacco carries nicotine as well, in addition to other harmful substances. Certainly to a lesser extent than cigarettes. However, the cigarette runs out and the smoker stops smoking until his brain demands a new dose of nicotine. With the hookah, the smoker runs the risk of smoking for much longer.

In addition, the freshness of the smoke, the density of the vapors and fumes, and the added aromas can be an incentive for the smoker to increase his consumption of tobacco.

Therefore, the debate of whether hookah is bad or good is meaningless. Like all those processes in which tobacco intervenes, we must know that we are engaging in a behavior that, in the long run, can affect our health.

Which is worse, the hookah or the burnt tobacco? Either one can end up hurting us. Let's be careful, and whether we smoke cigarettes or use a hookah, do not abuse tobacco. We must not fool ourselves into thinking that hookah is healthy, because that is not true.

Let's use common sense, and if we smoke, let's do it in moderation. As with almost everything, the key is to avoid excesses.