# Hookah and breastfeeding?



## FiddleMama (Feb 27, 2007)

Excuse my ignorance...my band is playing at a hookah parlour tonight and my mom's here to babysit the kids. Grammy is concerned about me being there for 3 hours and what might pass to my milk...? Ironically, she's never mentioned this when we've played in traditional smoky pubs, but I don't know what to tell her since I've never been to a hookah place before.

I don't smoke anything so I won't likely partake but what can you tell me about hookah? It seems like it will be a really fun gig- I just want to reassure my mom. Thanks!


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## BensMamacita (Mar 13, 2007)

Well, usually flavored tobacco is smoked out of hookahs, so it would at worst be comparable to a smoky pub. However, loose tobacco doesn't contain many of the preservatives that cigarettes do, so I suspect it would be even less harmful to your milk than a smoky pub.

It does sound like fun! I hope you have fun.


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## quantumleap (Apr 13, 2006)

Also, hookah bars don't smell smokey, I don't find, not in the same way that a cigarette smokey bar does. Given the function of the hookah, I really don't think there's the same smoke loose in the air - the only smoke would be the exhalation smoke from people, it's not sitting and smouldering into the air.
I think part of the hang up is likely that may people associate a hookah with substances other than simple flavoured tobacco (hash, etc).
Have a good gig!


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## Ravin (Mar 19, 2002)

While breastfeeding mothers and their babies are of course better off not smoking, smokers can still safely and effectively breastfeed--the risk factors are not as great as those of formula feeding, esp. of formula feeding + parent smoking.

One night of possible 'contact high' off of secondhand smoke for YOU isn't going to affect your baby at all, probalby. By the time you get home and nurse it'll likely be out of your system. I wouldn't worry.


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## Arduinna (May 30, 2002)

Yeah what everyone else said, the shisha used at the hookah bars I've been to doesn't really leave the place too smoky and it doesn't contain the additives found in American cigarettes. Although that doesn't stop people from smoking regular cigs or cloves or whatever it isn't any more unhealthful than regular cig second hand smoke and if that doesn't typically deter you I wouldn't worry about it.

Interestingly the only time I've felt a buzzy feeling from smoking tobacco was from smoking shisha though


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## kyndmamaof4 (Jul 25, 2006)

Just curious, what country are you from?







I'm in the good old USA...no Hooka clubs here...that I know of


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## JessicaS (Nov 18, 2001)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *kyndmamaof4* 
Just curious, what country are you from?







I'm in the good old USA...no Hooka clubs here...that I know of









There are hookah clubs here, they use tobacco.

Now, if she lives in some other country it might be something entirely different.


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## Arduinna (May 30, 2002)

I'm in the US also, we have a few in my city.


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## Arduinna (May 30, 2002)

Yeah in the US it's different, the ones in my city are bars with lounge style seating and they sell shisha by the bowl. Traditionally in the middle east hookahs are smoked at cafes and people hanging out and drink coffee and tea ect. I actually wish that it was like that here instead of the bar/nightclub thing.

In fact dh was really unhappy that at the local middle eastern restaurants hookah lounge here he can't even get turkish coffee because they are so focused on alcohol. We can get it in their restaurant on the other side of the door but we can't bring it into the bar









stupid


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## kyndmamaof4 (Jul 25, 2006)

Maybe I'm out of the loop







but what is shisha???

The only thing I've ever heard of smoking out of a hooka is pot or hash.

What have I missed???


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## Arduinna (May 30, 2002)

Shisha is middle eastern flavored tobacco, it comes in a ton flavors like apple and jasmine and mint. It usually contains molasses or honey mixed with the tobacco and fruit or flower or herbs to form a sticky mass that is smoked.


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## DreamsInDigital (Sep 18, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Arduinna* 
Shisha is middle eastern flavored tobacco, it comes in a ton flavors like apple and jasmine and mint. It usually contains molasses or honey mixed with the tobacco and fruit or flower or herbs to form a sticky mass that is smoked.

That sounds fabulous.







:


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## sunnybear (Nov 18, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *abimommy* 
There are hookah clubs here, they use tobacco.

Now, if she lives in some other country it might be something entirely different.









I've never been to a hookah club, but my ex had one and used it with shisha, not regular tobacco. A cigar shop near where we lived sold it.


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## sevenkids (Dec 16, 2002)

One of my favourite middle eastern restaurants has tables outside for hookah's, my favorite shisha is the coffee flavored, yum yum!


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## Breastfeeding Insomniac (Jan 15, 2007)

I am out of the loop, until I read through this thread I was thinking Hookah was slang for a hooker, like you were playing at a brothel







. I was thinking your Grammy was thinking you could catch something from the toilet seat







:


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## FiddleMama (Feb 27, 2007)

I'm back! It was a really fun gig and a lovely place. They did an amazing job with the decor and they served all different kinds of really delicious tea.

It wasn't smoky at all and my friend explained to me that the shisha inside the hookah is made up of mostly honey (???) and a little tobacco so that what is exhaled is more steam than smoke- I think a couple of you mentioned that also.

I am in the US- in Iowa. I don't know of any other hookah places in town but this one has been here almost three years.

Thanks for your help!


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## FiddleMama (Feb 27, 2007)

Quote:

Traditionally in the middle east hookahs are smoked at cafes and people hanging out and drink coffee and tea ect. I actually wish that it was like that here instead of the bar/nightclub thing.
Actually, that's what this place was like. It was awesome. They don't have a liquor license so they mostly served teas but you can bring in wine, etc. It was very chill, a cafe type setting.

The best thing about playing at a hookah parlour is that my coat and hair smell AWESOME today instead of that terrible stale smoke pub smell.


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## poetesss (Mar 2, 2006)

I'm not sure about what's exhaled (seems like just steam from what you are saying) but as far as what you inhale, hookah is much worse than regular cigarretes. Just a FYI as I always thought it was a safer alternative to smoking.

source:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hookah/AN01265

quote:


> Quote:
> 
> According to a recent World Health Organization (WHO) advisory, a typical one-hour session of hookah smoking exposes the user to 100 to 200 times the volume of smoke inhaled from a single cigarette. Even after passing through the water, the tobacco smoke produced still contains high levels of toxic compounds, including carbon monoxide, heavy metals and cancer-causing chemicals (carcinogens). Hookah smoking also delivers significant levels of nicotine - the very addictive substance in tobacco.


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## FiddleMama (Feb 27, 2007)

Quote:

I'm not sure about what's exhaled (seems like just steam from what you are saying) but as far as what you inhale, hookah is much worse than regular cigarretes. Just a FYI as I always thought it was a safer alternative to smoking.
Good to know- I don't smoke myself, but secondhand smoke is an occupational hazard for me so I appreciate the info.


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## Ashley Caruso (Aug 10, 2013)

Where r you from im from oregon and theres over a couple hundred hookah bars here


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## gexema (3 mo ago)

FiddleMama said:


> I'm back! It was a really fun gig and a lovely place. They did an amazing job with the decor and they served all different kinds of really delicious tea.
> 
> It wasn't smoky at all and my friend explained to me that the shisha inside the hookah is made up of mostly honey (???) and a little tobacco so that what is exhaled is more steam than smoke- I think a couple of you mentioned that also.
> 
> ...


okay guys no mom shaming please im honestly just wanting some answers. hubby and I would always smoke hookah (shisha) together before we had our first. once I found out I was pregnant with my daughter I stopped smoking, then when she was a couple months old and I wasnt breastfeeding I smoked again for about a month (only like once a week, outside at night with hubby while she was asleep) then I found out I was pregnant again and stopped and I havent smoked since then and my newest baby is now 3 weeks old, and my daughter is turning 1 year this month. I'm EBF other than the occasional breastmilk bottle due to pediatrician recommendation to see how much hes eating at one time. we may or may not start incorporating formula bottles at night (still thinking)... with this all said, my 20th birthday is coming up this month and hubby and I were talking about maybe going to a hookah lounge. ive been trying to do some research to see if the guidelines are similar to when you drink alcohol while BF but I cant seem to find anything official. I've seen "wait 6 hours", "pump and dump", "wait 3 hours" and a whole lot of mom shaming lol. I'm also curious as to what the guidelines would be with tobacco-free, nicotine-free shisha?? as of right now I'm not planning on smoking but if theres an actual safe way to do it, then it would be a possibility. any help is welcome, TIA!


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