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A bong (also water pipe) is a smoking device, generally used to smoke cannabis, tobacco, or other substances.

The construction of a bong is similar to a hookah. The functions of bongs and hookahs are analogous, as they produce similar results. A bong may be constructed from any air- and water-tight vessel by adding a screened bowl and stem apparatus (a slide).

The word bong is an adaptation of the Thai word baung (Template:Lang-th [bɔːŋ]), a cylindrical wooden tube, pipe, or container cut from bamboo, and which also refers to the bong used for smoking.

Bongs have been in use by the Hmong, in Laos and Thailand, for centuries. One of the earliest recorded uses of the word in the West is the McFarland Thai-English Dictionary, published in 1944, which describes one of the meanings of bong in the Thai language as, "a bamboo waterpipe for smoking kancha, tree, hashish, or the hemp-plant." A January 1971 issue of the Marijuana Review also used the term.

Comparison with other smoking methods

The rationale behind the use of a bong is the claim that the cooling effect of the water helps to reduce the chance of burning the mouth, airways, and lungs, thus many claim that using a bong to smoke is safer. The water can trap some heavier particles and water-soluble molecules, preventing them from entering the smoker's airways. Thus the mechanics of a bong function similarly to those of a laboratory gas washing bottle. This "filtration" can lead to the belief that bongs are less damaging than other smoking methods.

However, a 2000 NORML-MAPS study found that "water pipes filter out more psychoactive THC than they do other tars, thereby requiring users to smoke more to reach their desired effect". In the study, smoke from cannabis supplied by the NIDA was drawn through a number of smoking devices and analyzed. An inhalation machine, adjusted to mimic the puff length of cannabis smokers, drew smoke through a standard bong, a small portable bong with a folding stem, a bong with a motorized paddle that thoroughly mixes the smoke with the water, and two different types of vaporizers. Comparisons to traditional non-filtered smoking methods were not included in these experiments.

MAPS also reviewed a study that examined the effects and composition of water-filtered and non-filtered cannabis and tobacco smoke. It found that when alveolar macrophages were exposed to unfiltered smoke, their ability to fight bacteria was reduced, unlike exposure to water-filtered smoke. It also found substantial epidemiological evidence of a lower incidence of carcinoma among tobacco smokers who used water-pipes, as opposed to cigarettes, cigars, and regular pipes. "It appears that water filtration can be effective in removing components from cannabis smoke that are known toxicants... The effectiveness of toxicant removal is related to the smoke's water contact area.

Specially designed water pipes, incorporating particulate filters and gas-dispersion frits, would likely be most effective in this regard; the gas-dispersion frit serves to break up the smoke into very fine bubbles, thereby increasing its water-contact area." These frits are commonly referred to as "diffusers" for the way that they diffuse (or disperse) the smoke as it exits the downstem, and usually consist of small holes or slats at the end of the downstem. This study suggests that a bong's smoke is less harmful than unfiltered smoke.

Legality

In the United States, under the Federal Drug Paraphernalia Statute, which is part of the Controlled Substances Act, it is illegal to sell, transport through the mail, transport across state lines, import, or export drug paraphernalia.

In countries where marijuana and hashish are illegal, some retailers specify that bongs are intended for use with tobacco in an attempt to circumvent laws against selling drug paraphernalia. While technically 'bong' does not mean a device used for smoking marijuana, drug-related connotations have been formed with the word itself. Due to these connotations, some head shops will not serve customers who use the word "bong".

See also

• Water pipe percolator
• Operation Pipe Dreams
• Drug paraphernalia

References

1. "Office of National Drug Control Policy".
2. "Contraband: The Sale of Regulated Goods on the Internet".
3. Can a human skull be used as a bong?, retrieved 12 May 2008
4. "Thai dictionary entry for baawng".
5. "Marijuana Consumption: Smoking, Eating, And Drinking Marijuana".
6. "MAPS/CaNORML vaporizer and waterpipe studies".
7. ^ Nicholas V. Cozzi, Ph.D. Effects of water filtration on marijuana smoke: a literature review
8. "Phoenix New Times: Head Games".

External links

• US Patent number:, Water pipe or bong William V. Erickson et al.

• Drug paraphernalia
• Cannabis smoking