A shisha lounge. [Photo/ asraa.co]
The Tobacco Control Board has launched a crackdown on shisha dens across the coastal city of Mombasa.The board has raised concern that bar owners are promoting smoking of shisha among patrons in undesignated places.The board also argued that the mushrooming dens also pose a health and safety risk to the patrons and the public in general.Board member Dr Somba Kivunga who addressed journalists during one of the raids expressed concern that shisha cafes are growing in popularity in urban towns oblivious to the associated health problems linked to shisha pipe smoking.Kivunga said the board will liaise with the county governments to crackdown on those flouting regulations.Dr Kivunga revealed that they discovered shisha pipes in Mombasa sometimes contain bhang or even cocaine.“Security personnel have also raised concern that proceeds from these unregulated shisha dens are financing crime,” said Kivunga.Mombasa County Director of Health Dr Khadija Shikely on her part noted that respiratory diseases associated with smoking the pipes are on the rise.“One puff of shisha is like smoking ten cigarettes at a go,” said Shikely.Shikely said shisha contains nicotine and a typical shisha session exposes a person to 100 times more nicotine than smoking a cigarette.