Category: Nargile

Alert: Smoking Hookahs Can’t Be THAT Bad For You!

Hookahs and Smoking and RunningSo all of you have been ambushed by those crazies who will tell you that smoking the hookah is just as bad as smoking cigarettes. Well, I am no doctor, but here’s a little story that made me a believe that this simply isn’t true…

Yesterday I had the great priviledge for running a 15K roadrace, which is about 9.3 miles, in Utica, Ny. Without (almost) any training and having been smoking the hookah quite often as of late, I didn’t have a bit of trouble. Hell, I was hung-over and didn’t have to take a break and walk during the race. I ended in 95 minutes… which was faster than most of those “I run everyday, never smoke, and only eat broccolli” types of people. You know em.

So when people come up to you and say that you can’t run if you’ve been smoking, just challenge them to a race and have a fine puff of the hookah when you win.

Herbal Smoke… Damiana, Kava, Skullcap and More

Many people all over the world are now hooked on a new trend – herbal smoking, also known as legal bud smoking. Legal bud smoking involves inhaling the fumes of several herbs, after lighting them, either through specialized pipes, chillums or just by rolling them in cigarette paper.

A wide variety of these herbs have been branded as legal buds. These herbs are those which have been used for centuries in shamanic potions and traditional tribal teas. Herbal smokes are prepared by blending two or more of these herbs in varying proportions. Most popular herbs used are salvia divinorum, hops, chamomile, damiana, ginseng, kava kava, wild dagga, passion flower, star of Bethlehem, skullcap, Artemisia vulgaris, scotch broom tops, betel nut powder and many more. Some manufacturers also call them marijuana alternatives. These blends also contain powders of the mugwort, in order to hold the mixture together.

Many of these ingredients, like the Ayurveda and Persian, are well-known for their medicinal properties and even used in medicinal branches. Some of them are secretly grown. The salvia divinorum has been used for hundreds of years by the shamans of the Aztec civilization for its healing properties. The skullcap is another herb which supposedly relieves a person of worries and tensions. Damiana and ginseng are reputed aphrodisiacs.

American manufacturers procure these herbs from the Hawaiian Islands or Mexico, where the herbs are grown in secret plantations. There is a huge market in America for smokers of legal buds. Some claim that it gives the same high as smoking pure marijuana, but this is a misconception. Most of these herbs do provide ‘highs’, but they are very short-lived.

Herbal smoke is inhaled through pipes or chillums. Native Indians just roll the mixture in a betel leaf. Some people use cigarette paper for rolling the mixture.

The general perception is that herbal smoking is not as harmful as tobacco-smoking. Herbal cigarettes do not contain tobacco, and hence no nicotine. Some manufacturers even claim that these herbal blends do not affect children in any adverse manner. However, health experts have a different point of view. Burning leaves release tar, which clogs the lungs over a period of time. Herbal mixtures may not be as addictive as tobacco, but they do create a craving and a desire to smoke them repeatedly. The only proven effect of herbal smoke is its numbing effect of the nervous system, but health activists still hold herbal smoke in contempt.

Why Is My Hookah Harsh?

Lately I Have been asked quite often, Why is My Hookah Harsh? If your hookah isn’t as smooth as you like it, you’ll find yourself smoking less and less (and we can’t have that now, can we?). So, lets try to figure out your problem…

1. First off, take a look at this list of Hookah Tips to see if any of these will help your experience…

2. If those Tips don’t help, make sure that you are setting up the hookah correctly. I know, I know, you’ve done it a million times. Just brush up and make sure you are doing it right… you might have forgotten a step in your years of smoking.

3. Many times you will find that your hookah is smoking a bit too harsh if your shisha hasn’t been taken care of well and it is too dry and burning too quickly. I’d suggest reading these two little diddies ( Shisha Info 1, Shisha Info 2) and make sure that your shisha isn’t having any problems.

4. Lastly, I’ve found that usually your hookah is a bit too harsh if the coal gets to burning the sheesha too much. When it gets harsh, back that coal off a little bit and let the shisha get back to a reasonable temperature. Remember to take your time and treat the hookah like a part of the party and usually the hookah will give back some love too.

How To: Hookah Lounges

As prevalent in parts of the Middle East and India as delis or Starbucks are in the United States, with one on every corner, hookah lounges and hookah bars, once quite rare in the West, have lately been seeing a rise in popularity here. From the friendly ambience of many of these establishments to the uniquely relaxed mood of hookah smoking and the kid-in-a-candy store variety of flavorful tobaccos available, hookah lounges and bars have a lot on offer.

Much of this upsurge in popularity is due to college and university populations, who find hookah lounges an attractive way to spend quality time with friends in a sober, but socially easy, environment. Hookah lounges are big with sororities and fraternities, but there are older sets of patrons on the scene as well, and a multiplicity of ethnicities and people from all walks of life can be found in various hookah lounges.

Different hookah bars and lounges offer different things to go with the smoking experience. At some lounges, an older clientele comes to play cards, backgammon, or chess, while pool tables, video games, and big screen TVs are on offer for the younger crowd. Many lounges serve food and drink, from Turkish coffee, spicy chai, and honey-drenched bamieh fritters to foie gras and Moroccan spiced lamb, while hookah bars offer everything from wine and cocktails to package deals–including private booth or lounge, hookah, drinks, and appetizers–which run about $125 for four. Rental prices for hookahs in lounges generally run from $5 to $20 an hour, with tobacco prices from $4 to $9 per bowl. Whatever’s on offer, people feel comfortable enough to linger, gathered round the hookah pipe. You can find directories of hookah lounges in the U.S., Canada, and Europe at www.hookahforum.com or www.hookahculture.com, and other sites online.

Someone on staff–often the proprietor–is always happy to help those new to the experience of hookah smoking and guide them through it. Pipes are generally prepared for the patrons with whatever exotic flavor of tobacco they choose. There’s usually a hookah coal carrier, circulating through the lounge with coals and tongs to replenish any waning hookah coals.

Music ranges from jazz to hip hop to tablah-backed Middle Eastern pop music, d?©cor from re-interpretations of a Cairo caf?© to tiki hut to sophisticated bar. Whether the people come to play games, drink cardamom-infused coffee, sip cocktails, or just kick back and relax, hookah lounges and bars offer a unique multicultural take on an age-old tradition.