Balala should know that tobacco use is a leading preventable cause of death and a major risk factor for non-communicable diseases (NCDS) whose adverse effects no tourism revenue can remedy. Shisha is becoming more common with, especially girls, due to the flavours in the products that mask the harsh taste of tobacco. Besides the addictive substance, nicotine, and other carcinogenic substances such as tar found in all tobacco products, shisha products in Kenya have been found to contain ‘extras’, including narcotics. PASSIVE SMOKERSThe World Health Organization studies show that a 60-minute shisha session is equivalent to smoking 100 to 200 cigarette sticks. Indeed, taxation is an effective strategy for control of consumption of tobacco products and generation of government revenue.

Source: Daily Nation February 01, 2018 15:22 UTC