UAE parents say others must be warned against smoking around children

Smoking shisha near babies and children is unhealthy and sends out a bad message, parents say. Lee Hoagland / The National

ABU DHABI // Parents have said they are against shisha smokers puffing away while their children are present.

Iman Hasan, 24, a Jordanian, said her husband often smoked shisha around their one-year-old daughter.

“I am totally against smoking in all ways, not only in front of kids. However, my husband smokes shisha in front of my baby at times, although only in outdoor cafes,” she said.

“I tell him to stop and he does try to reduce the amount he smokes, although he has not quit.”

Sanila Basim, a 25-year-old Indian who lives in Abu Dhabi, said she often saw mothers smoking shisha in cafes while their babies slept near by.

“This is ridiculous because the mother could be breastfeeding her baby as well. Parents need to be educated on this subject,” she said.

“Some restaurants have designated smoking and non-smoking areas but both the parents still smoke near their infants. This was rather a disturbing sight for me,” she said.

Naseema Allie is a South African who works as a school counsellor in Abu Dhabi.

“Some places let the shisha smokers sit outside, but this is unfair because they get the lovely view and fresh air, which they destroy with their smoke, while the rest of us are confined indoors,” Ms Allie said.

She said she would not dream of taking her 16-month-old child to a shisha cafe.

Dyala Raoufi, 33, an architect from Turkey, has a four-year-old son and a two-year-old daughter.

“Second-hand smoking is dangerous for the lungs of little ones, not to mention the message we send out to them,” she said.

“The kids grow up smelling the smoke and learning that it is an acceptable habit.

“Parents should be made aware of the risks, and the bad habits of smoking in front of, or even near kids.”