On Friday, a new element to the smoking issue was introduced in Columbia. Located at 32 N. Ninth St., 9th Street Hookah Lounge opened its doors to the public.
The city has a 3-year-old smoking ban, but the hookah lounge is exempt from it because it sells tobacco and tobacco accessories as its main retail products. The Missourian previously reported, “To maintain its status as a tobacco retailer and not a restaurant, the lounge cannot sell food or beverages. Patrons can provide their own nonalcoholic beverages, but they must be at least 18 years old, the legal smoking age in Missouri.”
A proposed statewide smoking ban likely wouldn't impact the business, since the proposal currently allows an exception for tobacco retailers.
Hookah originated in the Middle East and is becoming increasingly popular in the U.S. The smoke from the flavored tobacco is filtered through a bowl of water at the base of the pipe, which often has several hoses for smokers to use.
The tobacco is no less toxic in a hookah pipe, and the water in the hookah does not filter out the toxic ingredients in the tobacco smoke. Hookah smokers may actually inhale more tobacco smoke than cigarette smokers do because of the large volume of smoke they inhale in one smoking session, which can last as long as 60 minutes.
While research about hookah smoking is still emerging, evidence from the American Cancer Society shows that it poses many dangers:
Columbia’s smoking ordinance, which passed in October 2006, prohibits smoking in restaurants and bars. Although the new hookah lounge is exempt, an old question comes up: When do public health concerns trump the rights of private business owners, and those of people engaging in legal behavior?
Do you think the new hookah lounge should be exempt from Columbia’s smoking ban?