The tobacco health nexus? Health messages in narghile advertisements
- Department of Health Behavior and Education, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
- Correspondence to Dr Rema A Afifi, Department of Health Behavior and Education, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, PO Box 11-0236, Riad El Solh 1107 2020, Beirut, Lebanon; ra15{at}aub.edu.lb
- Received 25 February 2009
- Accepted 1 June 2009
In many parts of the world, cigarettes are not the only form of tobacco smoked.1 2 In the eastern Mediterranean region, narghile (water pipe) is a more traditional form of tobacco consumption. The Lebanon Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS), conducted among schoolchildren in 2005, indicated that 61% were current users of tobacco and 33.9% currently smoked narghile.3 Research on the narghile smoke constituents suggest it is as harmful—if not more harmful—than cigarettes.4 5 Recently, narghile smoking has become “big business” and a variety of marketing techniques are being used to emphasise the enjoyable facet of smoking while disregarding its detrimental health effects.
One interesting marketing technique has …
