Without Tobacco, Hookah Cannot Be Considered a Safe Alternative for Health: MoH

Many believe that hookah without tobacco ("herbal" or "nicotine-free") is safer for health since it does not contain nicotine. However, scientific studies show that the absence of nicotine does not make hookah safe.

According to scientific data, the smoke produced during the use of both tobacco and non-tobacco hookahs contains numerous toxic substances that are hazardous to health, in nearly equal amounts. The main difference is that non-tobacco hookah does not contain nicotine. Nevertheless, in both cases, health-harming substances are produced and inhaled, including carbon monoxide (carbon gas), tar, nitrogen oxides, toxic aldehydes, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, many of which have carcinogenic properties.

The primary sources of these harmful substances are the burning coals used to heat the hookah, as well as the ingredients in the mixture, from which harmful substances are generated during heating and decomposition. It is known that these substances can damage health; carbon monoxide (carbon gas) reduces the delivery of oxygen to bodily tissues, tar, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and certain aldehydes contain substances that can increase the risk of cancer development, and aldehydes and nitrogen oxides irritate and damage the airways and lungs.

Thus, the absence of nicotine only reduces the likelihood of developing nicotine addiction, but does not eliminate the harmful effects of toxic substances entering the body as a result of hookah use.