'It glorifies tobacco use … in theeyes of youth.”īut some say its appeal toyouth is actually an asset. 'Often the use of hookahpipes can be the entry for people to start using tobacco products,” MecklenburgCounty Health Director Marcus Plescia said. The substances, called shisha, don’talways contain tobacco. Jaz Vincent, president of of the appeal toyouth, public health experts say, is the variety of flavorings available, whichrange from blackberry to bubble gum. To me, it’s taking a lot ofkids off the street and getting them to do something besides smoking weed andgetting drunk.

In a Wake Forest University survey of students at eight North Carolina universities, 40 percent said they had smokedtobacco from hookah pipes. In the United States, hookah is most popular among high school andcollege kids. Today, at least eight are operating.Ī typical hour-long hookahsession pollutes the body with 36 times the tar of a cigarette, 8.4 times thecarbon monoxide, and 1.7 times the nicotine, according to a study published inthe American Journal of Health Behavior. In 2007, there was only onehookah bar in Charlotte, according to Brennan Appel, president of Charlotte-based hookahdistributor South Smoke. A typical modern hookahhas a head (with holes in the bottom), a metal body, a water bowl, and aflexible hose with a mouthpiece. Hookah is a water-pipesystem used to smoke specially made flavored tobacco. This,devotees say, is hookah’s strongest suit: relaxation.Īnd while the city’s hookahbars range in atmosphere from nightclub to coffee house, you’re more likely toencounter leisurely conversation than high-paced activity. Soon their voices will be low as they sit, talk and smoke. They’vejust come here to lean back with Bacardi in one hand and a hookah pipe in theother. The arriving customers aren’t loud or drunk. by the time the Stache House hookah bar inSouth End starts to fill. Leonard said he and hisstaff have tried to be respectful of other businesses and that the ventilationrequirements are a legitimate point of public safety. 'I see (hookah lounges) asgiving people somewhere to hang out,” said Rodney Redmon, CEO of ahookah lounge in NoDa.

This change in code,though, is costing hookah bars tens of thousands of dollars. Charlotte firefighters have started carrying portablecarbon monoxide detectors and enforcing tougher ventilation standards at hookahlounges. Sincethen, local officials have increased scrutiny of hookah, a centuries-old methodof smoking that has become popular in Charlotte in the last eight years. Ten hours earlier, when the lounge was open, the levelsmight have been high enough to cause unconsciousness or death, Leonard feared. The levels were high enough to cause headaches,fatigue and nausea. , hours since anyone had smoked.Ĭharlotte deputy fire marshal Jonathan Leonard said hewas surprised and concerned.

But what Charlotte Fire Departmentinvestigators found caught them off guard.Ĭarbon monoxide levels werefour times the level required to evacuate the building, and the gas was comingfrom the King Tut Hookah Lounge next door. It started as a routinecall: An employee at a tattoo parlor on University City Boulevard smelled gas. Charlotte steps up scrutiny, regulation of hookah bars

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