Chitika

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Hookah - Its Use and Origin

By Hookah Joe


Used for smoking flavorful tobacco, a hookah is device that purifies smoke through a water basin before inhalation. The the best quality hookahs are found in the region of in and around Middle East, where the hookahs essentially belong to. The components of hookahs are simple and constructed in a straightforward manner.

Components

The photo here shows the principal parts of a hookah. The end of the body is immersed in a water jar through which the smoke produced by burning tobacco passes. The smoke is stored in an air chamber above the water once it is purified by the water. One more positive side effect of the smoke going from the water is that it is cooled down to a temperature more comfortable for the lungs. The hose can be found on the top left section of the water jar. It's not shown in the picture, but the length of the hose is approximately one meter. The smoker puffs on the hose and breathes in the smoker from the air chamber. After inhaling, the smoker breathes out clean and aromatic smoke. Hookahs are normally smoked in group settings where the smokers can enjoy the company of their family or friends.

What Do You Smoke Out of a Hookah?

Ordinarily hookahs are used to smoke shisha, which is flavorful tobacco. Modern-day shisha consists of some or all of the following: tobacco, treacle (uncrystallized syrup produced in refining sugar), honey, sugar, molasses, glycerin, nicotine, dried fruit and distilled water.

Shisha is generally fruit flavor based. But, flavors that are offshoots of these fruity favors for instance Banana split are now becoming more popular.

The tobacco flavors have become significantly adaptable due to the ease of flavoring at the time of production. The dried tobacco, glycerin, and sweetener can be blended with basically any ingredients to produce special flavors.

What is The Origin of Hookahs?

The very first hookah was invented by a Persian physician called Abul-Fath Gilani in the 1500's. The word hookah comes from the indian name of this device "huqqa." He produced a system to pass smoke through a water basin to purify the smoke because he was concerned with the health risks of smoking. But, it is said that even before he invented it, hookah existed in other parts of Persia. Whatever the case, the popularity of the hookah grew throughout India and Pakistan, westward into Iran, Turkey, and Lebanon. When the hookah arrived at Turkey, its fame increased in the Turkish elite, and it swiftly spread through Lebanon and Syria to the rest of the Middle East and into northern Africa. Now, it has become very well liked over the world.

As the hookah reached different countries, it picked up various names.

Nargile (also pronounced Argilee) - used in a lot of Mediterranean nations from Italy to Turkey to Israel

Narguile - used in Spain

Lula (or lulava) - used in Albania, Bosnia, Herzegovina

Sheesha - used in northern African and Arab countries

Qalyan - used in Iran

Karim Khan - used in Russia, Belarus

Chillim - used in Afghanistan and Uzbekistan

Huqqa - used in India and Pakistan

Gudugudaa - used in Maldives

Marra Pipe - used in the UK

I Want To Buy a Hookah, Where Should I Go?

You can go to a shop in-person to purchase a hookah or you can buy one online. Hookah shops have grown with the popularity of hookah bars across the U.S. since the turn of the century. You can easily find a hookah shop near you if you reside in a populated urban area in the U.S. Hookahs are gaining acceptance in the U.S., but they are not as popular here as in the Persian Gulf.

If you do not want to wander around looking for a hookah, then you a purchase one on the Internet from a number of shops online that provide high quality hookahs and shishas.

What You Need To Know About Health Hazards Before Starting to Smoke Hookah?

Whether smoking hookah is less hazardous than cigarette smoking is still not known. Inhaling any type of smoke is detrimental for lungs but the people in favor of hookah say that the smoke is cleaner and as compared to the smoke of a cigarette. Detractors say that hookah contains more harmful toxins as compared to cigarettes. It contains compounds such as tar, carbonmonoxide and heavy metals. One more argument is that hookah smoking sessions last 60 minutes or longer, so the amount of smoke breathed in is way greater than cigarette smoking. On the other hand hookah seems to be less addictive when compared with cigarettes.




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