By Katerina McCauley |Staff Writer|
I think the popularity in vapor tobacco stems from the general knowledge that it’s healthier than normal tobacco.
The common misconception that hookah and vapor tobacco are healthier than tobacco has turned into just healthy in general.
In reality, you are still inhaling something that’s not supposed to go in your lungs.
According to notobacco.net electronic cigarettes, a form of vapor tobacco, contain about 20 ingredients depending on the brand including nicotine, while tobacco cigarettes contain 4,000 ingredients like arsenic, carbon monoxide, and other cancer causing agents.
So a vapor-smoker still has 20 something chemicals going into their bodies but that number is definitely a lot better, and healthier than 4,000.
Hookah and electronic tobacco are quickly becoming a rising trend here on campus.
Both are vaporous forms of tobacco, and both boast about being better for the smoker than normal cigarettes.
With two hookah bars within five miles of campus, and several more throughout the Inland Empire, it’s no wonder it’s becoming the ‘hot’ hangout that it is.
Little information is provided on side effects of smoking hookah. Hookah not having nicotine and other chemicals associated with tobacco is a myth that helps propel its popularity.
Most sites generally agree that hookah is worse than a cigarette, because the smoker is exposed to more chemicals in a 45-60 minute session, including nicotine, than they are in a single cigarette pack.
The appeal of hookah is that it is different, and with laws restricting cigarette use in public areas it’s easier to use in social settings.
You can’t sit in a bar and smoke a cigarette anymore, but you can with hookah and other vapor based tobaccos.
Student Carley Bennecke said, “If you smoke hookah you’re the cat’s pajamas- so people smoke it to be cool and fit in and that it also makes them feel good. “
Bennecke admits that a positive aspect of vapor tobacco is that its user won’t smell like tobacco and won’t produce harmful second hand smoke.
Personally I have no issues with vapor based tobacco. I enjoy the environment hookah can bring, and I see it as relaxing alternative to alcohol which I think brings a lot into the popularity of hookah.
Michael Dandurand, member of the Board of Directors, agrees.
“It’s a social thing. People are either drinking or smoking,” Dandurand said. “Hookah has to be bad for you, but you gamble with your life everyday.”
I think it’s something to chalk up to experience and to quell curiosity, and I feel some of my peers can relate to that opinion.
Student Blanca Rodriguez said she knows that hookah isn’t healthy, but loves the feeling. It’s relaxing and a good social environment.
Student Joshua Wilson agrees that hookah is fun, but doesn’t know much about additives like nicotine.
“Cigarettes have more chemicals in them, so hookah is not as harmful,” said Wilson.
I think the popularity in vapor tobacco stems from the general knowledge that it’s healthier than normal tobacco.
Vapor tobacco is new on the radar of pop culture. When you mark something as ‘this is bad, no one should do it’ you’re going to create a culture of curiosity.
Hookah and vapor tobacco is another individual experience that most college student would be curious about.
Just remember, there are still health effects, but do what you see best for yourself.
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