Carbon Monoxide Readings

[the_cool]

I went to see my pharmacist that i will soon be working for and i mentioned i smoked shisha and have always wanted to test my CO levels. The CO meters are used to help stop smokers smoking ciggarrettes and monitor if they are cutting down or not.

I finished smoking a hookah at 5PM and then had this reading done at 7ishPM. I was told to take a breath and hold it in for ten secs and then to breath out into the machine. The first time i got just above 50 as a readout, which is extremely high. I had another go which was 20 ish, which is like a heavy smokers, and third time was 30ish. I realised that the first breath test was so high because i took a very deep breath and i exhaled for as long as i could. The longer you breathe out, the number on the readout rises. The 2nd and 3rd breaths were just normal exhales.

Not the most accurate experiment, but when i do my training at that pharmacy, i am going to see if i can borrow it, and will do some tests see how long it takes for CO levels to get back to normal, and see if excercise will help it etc etc.

Anybody happen to know how long it takes for CO to leave the body?

[bobbo21]

Excess carbon monoxide in the bloodstream has a half-life of about 4-5 hours.

I'm interested to hear the results of your experiments. Keep us posted!

[Scoop]

what coals are you using

[the_cool]

Well it will be atleast 6 months before i can start experimenting, but of course i will try and post some results.

I am using cocobrico's....coconut coals. fully lit!

EDIT: oh and im just thinkin, if CO has a half life of 4-5 hours, a cigarrette smoker will maintain levels as they smoke throught the day, whereas me for example who smokes once a day, the levels will return back to normal at some point. I think i read somewhere that extended high CO blood leves can lead to heart disease. Edited April 9, 2010 by the_cool

[r1v3th3ad]

wow, kinda cool study you got going there...I like

[Stuie]

interesting.

Would be cool to expand the experiment into different parts:

Coconut Coals

Quicklights

Japanese Coals

Bulk Coal

[the_cool]

I would love to do that, but coal is limited in the UK, all I can get is QL's and cocobricos. The reason I want to know more about this is because I always have to defend shisha comapred to ciggs. So far this is my POV:

1. That youtube vid of when some guy filter 400 ciggs and turns the water black cos of the tar has NEVER happened to me, another experiement i want to do is to smoke a flavour in the same water as long as i can and note any colour change. The contraption that guy uses is basically a hookah (filters the smoke though water) and so the same results should appear if shisha had the same amount of tar
2. Hookah tobacco is heated and cooked, not burnt. Many current studies always burn the tobacco at higher temps.
3. Many people i know have no noticable impact on health and fitness, and still can be quite active while smoking shisha
4. myself and friends, aswell as many people on here do not suffer that nicotine crave. I know cigg smokers who cant handle being without one, whereas i can go without and not have any phsyical withdrawl symptoms. My "addiction" is purely psychological, i want to smoke cos i enjoy it, rather than i need it. and i have no desire to smoke ciggs either.

The CO stuff is something i want to find more info about and so hopefully in 6 months i can start figuring it out.

DISCLAIMER: I am not sayiing hookah is fine to have, anything that isnt o2 isnt good for you and so health risks are there. I just dont feel its on the same level as ciggs thats all. Edited April 9, 2010 by the_cool

[Sonthert]

If you read the study from UVA Commonwealth...they compared smoking hookah for 45 minutes with smoking a cigarette. Hardly a fair test. If you multiply the cigarette numbers by 9 (9x5 minutes =45 minutes), then the cigarettes have more than twice as much as carbon monoxide.

[agunn1231]

this is something i have been wondering too since i heard somewhere that smoking hookah can elevate CO lavels to extreme levels in rooms with poor air flow.

[Caila]

This is really interesting. I have always wondered about the Cigarette vs. Hookah debate. I have never smoked cigarettes but I've been smoking hookah for about 5 years. I have heard so many different things but i don't really know what to believe.

[Josh Hamilton]

^^^so do you have yellow teeth? black gums? cough alot lately?

[Guest Cheng]

Cool, your such a geek

[the_cool]

[quote name='Cheng' date='28 April 2010 - 06:01 PM' timestamp='1272474093' post='465864']
Cool, your such a geek
[/quote]

LOL!!! thank you, I actually take pride in that

[rcracer_tx]

Interesting experiment and topic... Thanks for posting.

[Voliminal]

[quote name='the_cool' timestamp='1270845491' post='462854']
2. Hookah tobacco is heated and cooked, not burnt.
[/quote]

I've read that too, but how the smoke comes from something that isn't burnt? It is said: "No smoke without fire"

[Tom1]

[quote name='Voliminal' timestamp='1285857680' post='483641']
[quote name='the_cool' timestamp='1270845491' post='462854']
2. Hookah tobacco is heated and cooked, not burnt.
[/quote]

I've read that too, but how the smoke comes from something that isn't burnt? It is said: "No smoke without fire"
[/quote]

It's convection of the heat from the coal when you pull which heats the tobacco and evaporates the liquid. Edited October 1, 2010 by mushrat
Bumping old threads is fine if you have something to say.

[Arcane]

and it's not smoke...it's vapor....

[Chreees]

[quote name='Voliminal' timestamp='1285857680' post='483641']
[quote name='the_cool' timestamp='1270845491' post='462854']
2. Hookah tobacco is heated and cooked, not burnt.
[/quote]

I've read that too, but how the smoke comes from something that isn't burnt? It is said: "No smoke without fire"
[/quote]

Because you burn tobacco with cigs, regular pipes, etc. With hookah, the coals are separated from the tobacco by the foil. You're COOKING the tobacco, not burning it. Burning is what leads to the production of tar, etc.

My number one reason hookah is safer than cigs is because they add hundreds of chemicals to cigs. That's not the case with hookah tobacco. I also believe they add stuff to cigs to make them more addictive, hence why hookah smokers are able to quit smoking for a while and not have cravings, unlike cig smokers. Look at the health of a cig smoker vs. a hookah smoker. There's your proof.

[Voliminal]

[quote name='Tom16689' timestamp='1285870609' post='483654']

It's convection of the heat from the coal when you pull which heats the tobacco and evaporates the liquid.

Also, you shouldn't keep bumping old threads.
[/quote]
Ok nice info there.

I thought bumping this one ( which isn't thaaat old) would be better than making another whole post for just a question. And would also be helpful for some1 that has the same question like me. Dontcha think?

Cool info INCUBUSRATM, thanks

[mushrat]

The next time someone wants to flame a member for bringing up an older thread when they have something to add to it it will be their LAST post for a while. Be nice or be gone.

[Tom1]

Ahahaahah

So now answering someones question is flaming them?

[Jomohookah]

I smoke hookah on average 4 to 8 times per week. Smoking hookah is a very relaxing social activity steeped in rich tradition, especially among Arab cultures. Like anything moderation seams to be the key. Information appears scarce for the ill effects of smoking shisha. The information I have found is very slanted and lacks merit in the respect that insufficient data is associated with the claims such as lab data from experiments or long term in depth research. I would be very interested in reviewing the results from your experiments and research. I am currently studying to be a nurse, your results may prove intriguing and might be beneficial to a health professional. Best of luck with your endeavors.

[Chreees]

[quote name='Tom16689' timestamp='1285965758' post='483730']
Ahahaahah

So now answering someones question is flaming them?
[/quote]

You can answer people's questions; that's fine. It's unnecessary, however, to tell people to "stop bumping old threads." His question was relevant to the original post, so there's nothing wrong with it. Better to add to an old topic where it's been discussed before and have all the info in one place than to start a new thread therefore having multiple threads on the same issue, don't ya think? (Not that there's anything wrong with starting a new thread on the same topic either)

Voliminal, you're fine buddy. Bump all the old threads you want.

[Voliminal]

Heh! Thanks for the support though!

[RingsMaster]

little bit of a bump but curious if there are any more results.