Smoke from shisha pipes contains dangerous levels of lead and uranium which can increase the risk of cancer

Shisha pipes expose smokers to deadly levels of heavy metals including lead and uranium, according to new research. Researchers found smokers were breathing in over 26 times the recommended maximum daily exposure to uranium.

On average only three per cent of heavy metals are removed by the water and at least three fifth of the toxins are breathed in. Two fifths remain in the ash.

And a typical shisha smoking session can last up to an hour and expose the smoker to 100 - 200 times the volume of smoke in a single cigarette.

Plants like the tobacco plant can absorb and accumulate heavy metals depending on the soil in which they are grown.

Yet long term exposure to these heavy metals increases the risk of head and neck cancers, and other medical conditions.

Researchers from the German Jordanian University and the Royal Scientific Society Amman-Jordan, analysed four popular shisha tobacco brands.

Each sample was tested for total heavy metals present, including copper, iron, chromium, lead and uranium.

The amount of metal in smoke was calculated by subtracting the concentration of metals present in the ash residue and the water container after a smoking session from the total heavy metal concentration in the original shisha tobacco sample.

Dr Akeel Al-Kazwini, said: 'Since the trend of smoking waterpipe has increased markedly among the young in the last decade, not only in the Middle East but worldwide, our research adds to the evidence about its potential health hazards.

'It is also important to highlight the fact that water is mainly cooling the smoke, and not filtering it as is commonly believed. '

The amount of heavy metals in the water container was relatively low for all four brands - an average of 3 per cent of total heavy metals present, the study published in the journal BMC Public Health revealed.

This is compared to 57 per cent in the smoke and 40 per cent in ash residue.

The most abundant metal present in smoke was uranium, which was present on average in 800 parts per billion across the four samples.

The US Food and Drug Administration and WHO recommended maximum limit of uranium in drinking water of 30 parts per billion (equivalent to 30 micrograms per litre).

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