AJTCCM VOL. 29 NO. 1 2023 3
EDITORIAL
Ouédraogo and colleagues[1] from Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
describe the knowledge and use of Sisha smoking in students in
Burkina Faso, in this issue of the AJTCCM. Tobacco smoking is
most commonly associated with cigarette smoking, but a number of
other ways of consuming tobacco exist. Sisha smoking (also called
hookah or hubbly bubbly) uses tobacco smoke generated by burning
tobacco over charcoal which is then cooled by water, and inhaled
through a long pipe or hose. It has been prevalent in oriental and
third world countries for many years, before cigarette smoking.[2]. Like
modern day e-cigarettes, the eects of alternative forms of smoking
tobacco may be perceived by the public, as less harmful. It is therefore
interesting to ascertain what the attitudes of the public towards this
form of smoking, are. Students represent a young group of people that
may be vulnerable to societal inuence, and their view may describe a
picture of the views of tobacco-smoking in society, in general.
Ouédraogo and colleagues[1] find that there is an overall high
prevalence of Sisha smoking (38.5%) in their area, a nding which
correlates with other studies in Africa, and elsewhere.[3,4] High school
students however, tended to have a lower prevalence of Sisha smoking,
as found in a study in Ethiopia.[5] Interestingly, medical students tend
to have a better knowledge of the dangers of tobacco use, and tend to
smoke less. One study in Saudi Arabia found that only 1.6% of medical
students smoked Shisha, once a week.[6] As expected, peer pressure
plays an important role in inuencing Shisha smoking, as with other
forms of tobacco use.
e study as with the many other studies from Africa is a starting
point to nding out attitudes and prevalence of Shisha smoking, but
more will be needed in future, to ascertain the role of interventions
in decreasing overall tobacco use in our society if we are to have any
impact on overall health care.
A Goolam Mahomed, MB BCh (Wits), FCP (SA), FCCP
Louis Pasteur Private Hospital and Raslouw Private Hospital, Pretoria,
South Africa
akhtergm@telkomsa.net
1. A R Ouédraogo etal, Knowledge, practices and beliefs of students on health eects
of shisha use in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso : a cross-sectional study, AJTCCM
March 2023
2. Prignot JJ, Sasco AJ, E Chicken, Gupta PC, Aditama TY. Alternate forms of smoking.
Int J Tuberc Lung Dis 2008;12(7):718-727.
3. U Otakhoigbogie,B B Osagbemiro,E A Akaji. Knowledge and sociodemographic
predictors of shisha smoking among students in a Nigerian university. Niger J Clin
Pract 2022;25(6):779-785.https://doi.org/10.4103/njcp.njcp_1424_21.
4. Muzammil,D S Al Asmari,A S Al Rethaiaa, etal. Prevalence and perception
of shisha smoking among university students: A cross-sectional study. J Int
Soc Prev Community Dent 2019;9(3):275-281.https://doi.org/10.4103/jispcd.
JISPCD_407_18.
5. Hirpa S, Fogarty A, Addissie A, etal. An Emerging Problem ofShishaSmokingamong
High SchoolStudentsin Ethiopia. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2021;18(13):7023.
https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18137023.
6. Bin Abdulrahman KA, Khalaf AM, Bin Abbas FB, Alanezi OT. e lifestyle of Saudi
medicalstudents. Int J Environ Res Public Health 202;18(15):7869. https://doi.
org/10.3390/ijerph18157869.
Afr J Thoracic Crit Care Med 2023;29(1):e893. https://doi.
org/10.7196/AJTCCM.2023.v29i1.893
Shisha use amongst students
