No Tar? No Nicotine?

[Dirk Skene]

I was reading a myspace “about us” section of a hookah bar here in my town. In part it said it served “All natural, non-nicotine, non-tar sisha.” My reaction was WTF? Never heard of such. Shisha is tobacco, right? Are they full of it? Or is there something I don’t know?

[zeppyrkr]

there are a few alternatives, Soex is one of them, i think that lounge is just trying to get around tobacco laws and regulations? most ppl think its nasty ive tried before and lets say i never bought it after, and who knows if smoking sugar cane fibers is any better for you lol. i'd stay away from it.

[kbCorruption]

there are a few alternatives, Soex is one of them, i think that lounge is just trying to get around tobacco laws and regulations? most ppl think its nasty ive tried before and lets say i never bought it after, and who knows if smoking sugar cane fibers is any better for you lol. i'd stay away from it.

I live in New York where it is illegal to smoke tobacco inside a public building and we have a hookah bar that I visit pretty often. Now, I have no idea what they put in their hookahs (3 different employees have told me me 3 different stories) but I am pretty positive that it is not tobacco. So I can only assume that there is some kind of alternative to tobacco. Otherwise they would have been shut down already (they have been raided a few times). I don't know if it is Soex or not, but whatever it is, I enjoy smoking it. Edited December 12, 2008 by danktron3k

[erufiku]

there are a few alternatives, Soex is one of them, i think that lounge is just trying to get around tobacco laws and regulations? most ppl think its nasty ive tried before and lets say i never bought it after, and who knows if smoking sugar cane fibers is any better for you lol. i'd stay away from it.

I live in New York where it is illegal to smoke tobacco inside a public building and we have a hookah bar that I visit pretty often. Now, I have no idea what they put in their hookahs (3 different employees have told me me 3 different stories) but I am pretty positive that it is not tobacco. So I can only assume that there is some kind of alternative to tobacco. Otherwise they would have been shut down already (they have been raided a few times). I don't know if it is Soex or not, but whatever it is, I enjoy smoking it.

Good to see that the police is up to something productive instead of wasting their time on, say, arresting criminals and other nonsense.

[AKammenzind]

There are plenty of alternatives to tobacco, but like already said we have no idea what the health effects of those are. Plus the general consensus is that non-tobacco shisha is generally found to be lacking.

So yes, nicotine free shisha exists... not sure the smoke would be tar-free though, and I rather doubt it. Even most tobacco-based shisha is touted as having no tar.

[linebacker131]

Here in Illinois its illegal to smoke indoors but since there business is hookah there aloud to stay open but they cant sell food or something like that.

[GreatPigHookah]

Here in Illinois its illegal to smoke indoors but since there business is hookah there aloud to stay open but they cant sell food or something like that.

Man, that's just insane. Whatever happened to "if ya don't want to be around it, then don't visit the places that have it"? Nobodys forcing people to eat or drink in smoking establishments. This country is going to hell in a hurry. /rant

[zeppyrkr]

what he said ^ sigh ....

[linebacker131]

Very true its pretty gay and its kinda weird to. You go into the bowling alleys and stuff and there is no smoking its really weird.

[Dirk Skene]

.....but they cant sell food or something like that.

That's a gripe. The 3 hookah bars here in Memphis that I am aware of do sell coffee, desserts & Middle-Eastern foods. I have only been to one of them. I think the other 2 mostly cater to the collage set. Which is fine of course, but just a tad too lively for me.

[ColibriDon]

Here in Illinois its illegal to smoke indoors but since there business is hookah there aloud to stay open but they cant sell food or something like that.

Man, that's just insane. Whatever happened to "if ya don't want to be around it, then don't visit the places that have it"? Nobodys forcing people to eat or drink in smoking establishments. This country is going to hell in a hurry. /rant

Completely agree. I don't understand why these anti-smoking maniacs are so cruel that they have to tell people who enjoy smoking what to do while they smoke. Gah! I hate it! If you don't want to eat where there's smoke (hell, hookah smoke smells fantastic) then go somewhere else! /rant

[kbCorruption]

there are a few alternatives, Soex is one of them, i think that lounge is just trying to get around tobacco laws and regulations? most ppl think its nasty ive tried before and lets say i never bought it after, and who knows if smoking sugar cane fibers is any better for you lol. i'd stay away from it.

I live in New York where it is illegal to smoke tobacco inside a public building and we have a hookah bar that I visit pretty often. Now, I have no idea what they put in their hookahs (3 different employees have told me me 3 different stories) but I am pretty positive that it is not tobacco. So I can only assume that there is some kind of alternative to tobacco. Otherwise they would have been shut down already (they have been raided a few times). I don't know if it is Soex or not, but whatever it is, I enjoy smoking it.

Good to see that the police is up to something productive instead of wasting their time on, say, arresting criminals and other nonsense.

Yah it is pretty bogus. It is owned by a young college student, so I think they just assume that they are up to no good.

[erufiku]

There are plenty of alternatives to tobacco, but like already said we have no idea what the health effects of those are. Plus the general consensus is that non-tobacco shisha is generally found to be lacking.

So yes, nicotine free shisha exists... not sure the smoke would be tar-free though, and I rather doubt it. Even most tobacco-based shisha is touted as having no tar.

Well the 'baccy itself has no tar... it's produced when you heat it. As far as I know tar is produced whenever you heat/burn something so the 'healthy' alternatives might produce a comparable amount of tar when smoked.

I think the smoking ban did more harm than good as far as hookah bars are concerned. Now people read '100% tobacco and tar free' and assume that smoking the herbal stuff will have no adverse health effects whatsoever.

[Dirk Skene]

..... I don't understand why these anti-smoking maniacs are so cruel that they have to tell people who enjoy smoking what to do while they smoke. Gah! I hate it! .......

Yer dang right. Besides that, the one I go to on occation has a marviouls ventilation system. The owner, Jessie (Iranian guy named Jessie, go figure. Gotta be an Americanized Pharse name of some kind) said he spend damn good money on it.

[Rani]

We've kinda jacked the thread, but I agree with everyone who said smoking bans are obsurd. If smoking establishments were clearly opened for exactly that, cigarette smokers wouldn't all be standing around outside polluting the open air, would they? What's more dangerous to a non-smoker? A closed establishment where the smoke is contained and filtered out in the ventilation system? Or just out in the open air where you might end up walking through clouds? I believe in California at least there's still a way around it. You open as a private club, sell memberships and then are considered a private not public locale where you can do anything you like. For example, lodges like the Elks, etc. still smoke.

'Rani

[Dirk Skene]

We've kinda jacked the thread, but I agree with everyone who said .........'Rani

Not to worry Rani I started this thread & unless I gripe to the mods, which I have no intention of doing, we can just keep on keeping on. I am sure that's how it works. Edited December 12, 2008 by Dirk Skene

[AKammenzind]

There are plenty of alternatives to tobacco, but like already said we have no idea what the health effects of those are. Plus the general consensus is that non-tobacco shisha is generally found to be lacking.

So yes, nicotine free shisha exists... not sure the smoke would be tar-free though, and I rather doubt it. Even most tobacco-based shisha is touted as having no tar.

Well the 'baccy itself has no tar... it's produced when you heat it. As far as I know tar is produced whenever you heat/burn something so the 'healthy' alternatives might produce a comparable amount of tar when smoked.

I think the smoking ban did more harm than good as far as hookah bars are concerned. Now people read '100% tobacco and tar free' and assume that smoking the herbal stuff will have no adverse health effects whatsoever.

Yup, the first paragraph was pretty much my point. But you're quite right about the second bit I'm afraid. I mean, even with tobacco... we get people in the forums all the time thinking that hookah smoking has no adverse health effects. Still not sure how people think that... heh.

[newjacksm]

there are a few alternatives, Soex is one of them, i think that lounge is just trying to get around tobacco laws and regulations? most ppl think its nasty ive tried before and lets say i never bought it after, and who knows if smoking sugar cane fibers is any better for you lol. i'd stay away from it.

I live in New York where it is illegal to smoke tobacco inside a public building and we have a hookah bar that I visit pretty often. Now, I have no idea what they put in their hookahs (3 different employees have told me me 3 different stories) but I am pretty positive that it is not tobacco. So I can only assume that there is some kind of alternative to tobacco. Otherwise they would have been shut down already (they have been raided a few times). I don't know if it is Soex or not, but whatever it is, I enjoy smoking it.

The hookah bars ive been too in NYC and Astoria Queens legitimately put in shisha (Not the Herbal shit). I asked them the brands, Al Fahker, Nakhla, Al Waha are the brands that they use. The places I go to are traditional. How ever every place I have been to name there flavors them selves, they dont put the brand on there..

[mushrat]

there are a few alternatives, Soex is one of them, i think that lounge is just trying to get around tobacco laws and regulations? most ppl think its nasty ive tried before and lets say i never bought it after, and who knows if smoking sugar cane fibers is any better for you lol. i'd stay away from it.

I live in New York where it is illegal to smoke tobacco inside a public building and we have a hookah bar that I visit pretty often. Now, I have no idea what they put in their hookahs (3 different employees have told me me 3 different stories) but I am pretty positive that it is not tobacco. So I can only assume that there is some kind of alternative to tobacco. Otherwise they would have been shut down already (they have been raided a few times). I don't know if it is Soex or not, but whatever it is, I enjoy smoking it.

I believe the hookah bars in NYC got an exemption to the smoking ban on cultural grounds.

[Bulldog_916]

Anti-smoking nutjobs are getting more and more thirsty for new ordinances every time they pass one. They get around an establishment type and then ordinance it to death. First it's "establish a closed off smoking section so that non-smokers dont have to breath it in as they play bingo" or whatever. Then it's "save the workers at the establishment, make the establishment non-smoking to protect them." Then it's "make the smoking perimeter 20 feet, so that nobody entering the establishment has to breath in the smoke." Now it's run to insanity. "Prohibit smoking inside smoking establishments like cigar bars. It's dangerous to someone who could just walk in. If they decide to camp out, it's even worse. We need smoking establishments to no longer smoke even if that's the reason they were created in the first place and everybody working and entering the establishment knows they are there for that reason." They need to get a life. Stop interfering in ours.

http://www.socialsmokers.org/index.html

[TroxX]

SoeX is actually not bad, if you can live without the buzz

[Dirk Skene]

SoeX is actually not bad, if you can live without the buzz

Does that brand have a low sugar content? Edited December 13, 2008 by Dirk Skene

[Zinite]

SoeX is actually not bad, if you can live without the buzz

Does that brand have a low sugar content?

Doubtful, considering the main ingredient is sugar cane bagasse. The reason I would never trust Soex is that they list their ingredients in Pig Latin. The bagasse is listed as Ugarsay anecay agassebay.

Exposing your lungs to bagasse is known to cause pulmonary fibrosis.

Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bagasse#Medical_problems

This has been discussed here too: http://www.hookahforum.com/?showtopic=9241

[Sordino]

Yeah anytime ingredients are listed in pig latin it kinda makes you think wtf are they hiding. Oh, only time I have seen them in pig latin is on soex boxes. Go figure.

[newjacksm]

there are a few alternatives, Soex is one of them, i think that lounge is just trying to get around tobacco laws and regulations? most ppl think its nasty ive tried before and lets say i never bought it after, and who knows if smoking sugar cane fibers is any better for you lol. i'd stay away from it.

I live in New York where it is illegal to smoke tobacco inside a public building and we have a hookah bar that I visit pretty often. Now, I have no idea what they put in their hookahs (3 different employees have told me me 3 different stories) but I am pretty positive that it is not tobacco. So I can only assume that there is some kind of alternative to tobacco. Otherwise they would have been shut down already (they have been raided a few times). I don't know if it is Soex or not, but whatever it is, I enjoy smoking it.

I believe the hookah bars in NYC got an exemption to the smoking ban on cultural grounds.

Mush its also enviorment, if your going to a hookah bar you know where you are going to be. Smoke shops in NY are aloud to have people smoke in there. Every smoke shop I have been to on Long Island have ash trays for people to smoke cigars/cigs.. I remember a lady walked into a smoke shop when I was buying shisha and the Cigar represenative was smoking his cigar he was trying to sell and the lady complained. The store owner said. "This is a smoke shop and he can smoke in here if you dont like it go buy some where else." She bought her pack of sticks and left.....

I have heard rumor though NY will be banning all Hookah bars by 2010/2011. This how ever was from a money grubbing asshat, so from a validation/truth stand point.... I wouldnt be to sure about that.

I have also been to bars on Long Island that allow smoking. There are loop holes around the system here in NY... Edited December 13, 2008 by newjacksm