Hookah Smoking Increasing in Birmingham Establishments

The number of shisha bars in Birmingham has increased five times since the ban on smoking in bars and clubs was implemented. Anti-smoking activist have cautioned customers that they are putting their lives at risk as they consider that smoking hookah is healthier than smoking regular cigarettes.

But a representative of a famous Birmingham hookah bar declared that they offer an alternative to bars which sold beverages and customers were adults who lighted up in reasonable limits. The Birmingham City Council stated that it knows everything about all 15 shisha bars in the city. All bars and cafes are covered by the ban on smoking in indoor places which came into force in July 2007. Those customers, who will infringe the law, will be charged £9 for smoking hookah pipe, a special device in which fruited tobacco is burned. The smoke in the pipe goes through water, where it is cooling down and then is inhaled through a hose.

Hookah tobacco is available in great varieties such as black currant, cherry, honey melon, mint, apple, grape and many others. Usually hookah bars offer coffee or other beverages and food as for instance Mediterranean and Middle Eastern snacks most known as meze. The smoking ban was passed by council inspectors, so all who infringe it will have to pay the penalty in conformity with the Birmingham regulations.

For instance in 2010, a Hookah Lounge was fined £1,500 and demanded to pay £844 prosecution costs after Birmingham justice’s court enacted that a stand where smoking was allowed was considered as an enclosed place. Hookah bars are legal if they are not more than 50% enclosed. “Currently we face an increase in hookah smoking. I think that problem is that too many people suppose that smoking hookah is healthier than regular tobacco products. The water through which the smoke passes doesn’t remove all toxins and chemicals from tobacco,” said Mike Knapton, medical director at the British Heart Foundation. A representative for the Exhale Sheeshateria, stated: “It is a rather common habit. You usually make several drags and don’t have to sit there smoking constantly. People enjoy their favorite flavor and are not supposed to inhale as with a regular cigarette. Our regular customers range from 18 to 55 or so, but the most are already in their 20s or 30s, so they can decide what they want and what is better for them.”