Hookah bars contain harmful indoor air pollution: Study

Washington: Frequent hookah bar visitors, beware! Water-pipe smoking creates higher levels of indoor air pollution than cigarette smoking, scientists have warned.

Smoking water-pipes, or hookahs, creates hazardous concentrations of indoor air pollution and poses increased risk from diminished air quality for both employees and patrons of water-pipe bars, a new US study has found.

In an analysis of air quality in seven water-pipe bars, researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that airborne particulate matter and carbon monoxide exceeded concentrations previously measured in public places that allowed cigarette smoking and that air nicotine was markedly higher than in smoke-free establishments.

Tobacco-related research and tobacco control efforts in the US have generally focused on cigarettes, but other forms of tobacco products and tobacco use are common in many countries, including the US.

Water-pipe cafes - also known as hookah bars - have grown in popularity in the US and worldwide, particularly among young adults, researchers said. For their study, researchers surveyed seven water-pipe cafes in Baltimore, Maryland, from December 2011 to August 2012.

They measured carbon monoxide levels, airborne nicotine content and respirable particulate matter with a mean particle diameter of less than 2.5 microns (PM2.5). A micron is approximately 1/30th the width of a strand of human hair.

"There is a mistaken notion that tobacco smoking in a water pipe is safer than cigarettes," said Patrick Breysse, study's senior author. "Our results suggest that this is not the case. Our study found that water-pipe smoking creates higher levels of indoor air pollution than cigarette smoking, placing patrons and employees at increased health risk from secondhand smoke exposure," said Breysse.

Indoor airborne concentrations of PM2.5 and carbon monoxide were markedly elevated in water-pipe cafes, confirming that water-pipe smoking severely affects indoor air quality.

Air nicotine concentrations, although not as high as in hospitality venues that allow cigarette smoking, were also elevated and markedly higher than levels previously found in smoke-free bars and restaurants. The study was published in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.