Hookah has a long and storied history. Also known variously as a hubble-bubble, narghile, shisha, or water pipe, among other names, hookahs have been used for a mellow tobacco smoking experience in Asia and the Middle East for centuries. Coming to the Middle East from India, the hookah started as a humble coconut shell. In Turkey, it evolved into the true hookah, becoming a mainstay of coffee house life during the 17th century. Hookah smoking is still very common in cafes and restaurants throughout the Middle East.

 

Smoking Shisha has become popular among the college crowd lately and reports show that hookah is becoming popular among youth as well. Globally, there are about 100 million hookah smokers. A hookah is a water pipe that passes tobacco smoke through water before it’s inhaled. The water, however, does not filter out any toxins and is just as harmful as cigarettes. Hookah is usually smoked in a group and has a variety of attractive flavors like mint, cherry, apple, or coconut. The mix of the social setting and candy-like names of the hookah are likely one reason for its growing popularity among kids.

 

Because of the setting, a group can spend, on average, an hour smoking hookah, making it equivalent to about 200 puffs per person. It takes about 20 puffs to smoke a cigarette, so only one hour of smoking hookah is equivalent to smoking 10 cigarettes. Hookah contains tobacco and high levels of carbon monoxide from the charcoal heating the tobacco. There is a false belief that hookah is not as harmful as cigarettes, but hookah smoke has the same harmful effects that cigarettes do. Hookah can be more harmful because of the longer time spent smoking it.

 

In most states, kids need to be at least 18 to purchase and smoke a hookah. However, most hookah bars in the United States do not require kids to be 18 to enter the premises. So it’s not uncommon to see underage teens in a hookah bar having easy access to smoke and being exposed to secondhand smoke.

 

The slow and relaxed experience of smoking a hookah, which includes preparation of the hookah and the tobacco, is the whole point of hookah smoking. It’s not about a buzz or a nicotine fix, it’s about the relaxed space, among friends and out of time, that is created by the hookah and the act of smoking it. Typically, a hookah smoking session lasts somewhere between 30 and 60 minutes.

 

After carefully preparing a clean hookah with cold water, selecting a flavorful tobacco for the bowl, lighting, and adding the charcoal, the aromatic hookah smoke is drawn bubbling through the water. Cooled and softened after being filtered by the water, light, pleasant smoke infuses the senses, lingering on the air, encouraging slow meditative breathing and sweetening conversation, games of dominoes, or quiet contemplation and study.

 

Some techniques used to enhance the experience of hookah smoking are adding ice to the water and chilling the hoses beforehand. The lush fruit flavors of hookah smoke can be heightened by the addition of fruit juice or wine to the water in the base, and both customers and proprietors of hookah smoking lounges regularly combine tobacco flavors to come up with their special blends.

 

Some tips and warnings given by veteran smokers include the following: always use the proper charcoal, specifically made for hookah smoking-regular charcoal briquettes cause carbon monoxide poisoning, and charcoal that isn’t low-smoke will overwhelm the hookah smoke; only a very small amount of hookah tobacco is needed in the bowl since a little goes a long way; if the smoke or flavor are lacking, it’s probably because the coals aren’t hot enough-when smoking for more than half an hour or so, fresh coals will be needed.

 

Because hookah smoking is and has traditionally been, a social activity, the etiquette which attends it is important. Some of the rules of etiquette are never to light cigarettes using the charcoal that heats the hookah tobacco; avoid blowing smoke in the face of another person unless they ask–so they can taste the flavor being smoked; since the point of the individual plastic mouthpiece is health and safety, don’t share them; when one person is done smoking but the hookah is still in use, setting a hose directly on the table signifies that smoker is finished and another person may use the hose; when a hookah smoking session is completed, the hoses should be wrapped around the stem; finally, don’t smoke anything but tobacco out of a hookah.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for the best hookah site with the largest selection of hookah accessories, then you’ve come to the right place. At Chillum, we carry an incredible array of products from all over the world, so you’re sure to find everything you need to get started with hookah smoking. From shisha tobacco to hookah pipes and even humidifiers, we have it all! Plus, our customer service team is available 24/7 to help you browse our selection and find what exactly fits your needs. So what are you waiting for? Start shopping today at Chillum!