Women and Waterpipe Tobacco Smoking in the Eastern Mediterranean Region: Allure or Offensiveness

Abstract

The prevalence of waterpipe tobacco smoking is increasing worldwide, despite evidence indicating its adverse health effects. Women and young people seem more likely to be choosing waterpipe tobacco smoking over cigarettes. The objective of this qualitative study was to understand better whether and why waterpipe smoking is a more acceptable form of tobacco use than cigarettes for women in the Eastern Mediterranean Region, and to understand whether the strategies used by multi-national corporations to attract women to cigarette smoking were perceived to be relevant in the context of waterpipe tobacco use. Focus groups (n = 81) and in-depth interviews (n = 38) were conducted with adults in Lebanon, Egypt, Palestine, and Syria. Discussions were thematically analyzed and recurrent themes identified. One of the themes which emerged was the negative image of women smoking waterpipes. Moreover, the sexual allure conveyed through waterpipe smoking as well as waterpipe tobacco smoking as a symbol of emancipation was illustrated. The latter was mainly expressed in Lebanon, in contrast with Egypt where traditional gender roles depict women smoking waterpipes as disrespectful to society. Understanding the social aspects of waterpipe tobacco smoking is crucial to planning future interventions to control waterpipe tobacco smoking among women and in society at large.

Keywords:

• waterpipe (hookah or shisha)
• women
• qualitative research
• gender roles
• sex appeal

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank all those who participated openly in the interviews and focus group discussions and provided insight into the waterpipe tobacco smoking phenomenon.

This research was funded by a generous grant from the International Development Research Centre, Research for International Tobacco Control.