Leading North American heart surgeon Dr. Gopal Bhatnagar has realized that e-cigarettes are one method of transforming a deadly habit into an almost harmless one. The Canadian doctor has developed an open source 3D printable adapter for converting hookahs into ornate e-cigs.
Dr. Bhatnagar is the co-founder of 180 Smoke, a crowd-sourced e-cigarette company that has released the hookah converter’s design files for free on their site. According to the surgeon, Hookahs play a significant role in more than 100 million daily smokers worldwide who are largely oblivious to the fact that a 1-hour hookah session produces almost as much smoke volume as 200 cigarettes. The adapter invented by 180 Smoke allows them to still engage in this social practice, but without the combustion, tar, carbon monoxide and thousands of other chemicals.
The 3D-printable adapter, available for download or through Shapeways, replaces the ceramic bowl that traditionally holds shisha tobacco. In place of the tobacco, smokers can insert automatic e-cigarettes, including disposables, for a more innocuous experience. The company also sells a $200 converter, similarly priced to other such products on the market, but hopes that this new, open source e-hookah adapter will make safe hookah smoking more accessible to a larger population of people. By sharing this innovation and tackling myths about water filtration, herbal hookah safety, and other widespread misinformation, 180 Smoke strives to equip smokers with the tools, resources and information they need to make better choices.
