Bong

This article is about a pipe that is used for smoking cannabis and other substances. For the preparation of cannabis leaves and flowers, seeBhang.For other uses, seeBong (disambiguation).

A bong with a circular carburetion port in the front of the bowl

Abong(also known as awater pipe) is a filtration device generally used for smokingcannabis,tobacco,or other herbal substances.In the bong shown in the photo, the smoke flows from the lower port on the left to the upper port on the right.

In construction and function, a bong is similar to ahookah,except smaller and especially more portable. A bong may be constructed from any air- and water-tight vessel by adding a bowl and stem apparatus (or slide)which guides air downward to below water level whence it bubbles upward ( "bubbler" ) during use. To get fresh air into the bong and harvest the last remaining smoke, a hole known as the "carburetor", "carb", "choke", "bink", "rush", "shotty", "kick hole", or simply "hole", somewhere on the lower part of the bong above water level, is first kept covered during the smoking process, then opened to allow the smoke to be drawn into the respiratory system. On bongs without such a hole, the bowl and/or the stem are removed to allow air from the hole that holds the stem.

Bongs have been in use by theHmonginLaosandThailand,as well all over Africa, for centuries.One of the earliest recorded uses of the word in the West is in the McFarland Thai-English Dictionary, published in 1944, which describes one of the meanings ofbongin the Thai language as, "a bamboo waterpipe for smoking kancha, tree, hashish, or the hemp-plant". A January 1971 issue of theMarijuana Reviewalso used the term.

Etymology

The wordbongis an adaptation of theThaiwordbongorbaung(Thai:บ้อง,[bɔ̂ŋ]), which refers to a cylindricalwoodentube,pipe,orcontainercut frombamboo,and which also refers to the bong used for smoking.

History

Excavations of akurganin Russia in 2013 revealed thatScythiantribal chiefs used gold vessels 2400 years ago to smoke cannabis and opium. The kurgan was discovered when construction workers were clearing land for the construction of a power line.

During the reign ofEmperor Akbar,physician Hakim Abul Fath invented the waterpipe inIndia,and discovered tobacco. Abul suggested that tobacco "smoke should be first passed through a small receptacle of water so that it would be rendered harmless".Other sources also show evidence of the invention of the waterpipe inChinaduring the lateMing dynasty(16th century), along with tobacco, through Persia and theSilk Road.By theQing dynasty,it became the most popular method to smoke tobacco, but became less popular since the Republic era. While typically employed by commoners, the water pipe is known to have been preferred byEmpress Dowager Cixiover snuff bottles or other methods of intake. According to theImperial Household Department,she was buried with at least three water pipes; some of her collections can be seen in thePalace Museum.

The water pipe employed since the Qing dynasty can be divided into two types: the homemade bamboo bong commonly made and used by country people, and a more elegant metal version employed by Chinese merchants, urbanites, and nobility. Metal utensils are typically made out of bronze or brass, the nobility version of silver and decorated with jewels. Typically, the metal version is made out of the following components:

• The water pipe itself, a single-piece construct consisting of the bowl-stem, the water container, and a drawtube at least 3 inches, but some can be up to 12 inches in length. Some are straight with a "Joint" (Sandblasted top part of stem, usually about 1 inch long, and all the way around, tapered or cone shaped, so the tapered, or "cone shaped" bowl will fit in)some are bent to resemble acrane.The size of the bowl is similar to that of aone-hitter,typically the width of a thumbnail or smaller.
• The tobacco container with a lid.
• A pipe rack small enough to be held by one hand, and consisting of two large holes for the tobacco container and the water pipe. It may have smaller holes to hold various pipe tools.

During a smoking session, the user may keep all equipment inside the rack and just hold the entire assembly (rack, pipe, and container) in one hand, lighting the bowl with a slow-burning paper wick ( giấy than đá ) lit over a coal stove. Unlike in North America and the Southern Hemisphere, the water pipe is typically employed by older generations.

Use

Diagram of a bong in operation

The water can trap some heavier particles and water-soluble molecules, preventing them from entering the smoker's airways.The mechanics of a bong are compared to those of a laboratorygas washingbottle. The user puts their mouth at the top and places the cannabis in the tube, as shown in the picture.

Bongs are often eitherglassorplasticthat use a bowl, stem, and water to produce smoke. Most glass bongs are made from heat resistantborosilicate glass,allowing the bong to withstand repeated use and heat exposure without breaking. After the bowl has been packed and water has been inserted into the bong, the substance is lit and the smoke is drawn through water to produce a smoother smoke than other methods of smoking do.To smoke a bong, the smoker must inhale in the bong so bubbles containing smoke begin to come from the stem. Once the bong has a fair amount of smoke built up, either the carb is uncovered or the stem is separated from the bong, allowing the remaining smoke to be inhaled.

A bong made from a plastic sports drink bottle

However, a 2000NORML-MAPScannabis study found that "water pipes filter out more psychoactiveTHCthan they do other tars, thereby requiring users to smoke more to reach their desired effect ".In the study, smoke from cannabis supplied by theNIDAwas drawn through a number of smoking devices and analyzed. This study looked at the tar to cannabinoid ratio in the gas in output by various bongs, as well as unfiltered and filtered joints, and vaporizers. The results showed that only vaporizers produced a better tar to cannabinoid ratio than unfiltered joints, but that within the cannabinoids produced, even vaporizers warped the ratio of THC (the psychoactive component of the smoke) toCBN(capable of producing medical benefits but is not psychoactive) in favor of CBN. This showed an unfiltered joint had the best tar to THC ratio of all, and bongs were actually seriously detrimental in this respect.

MAPSalso reviewed a study that examined the effects and composition of water-filtered and non-filteredcannabisandtobacco smoke.It found that whenalveolarmacrophageswere 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 ofcarcinomaamong tobacco smokers who used water-pipes, as opposed tocigarettes,cigars,and regularpipes."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-dispersionfrits,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 asdiffuserfor 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.

Adverse health effects

See also:Vaping-associated pulmonary injury § Possible causes

Bongs that are cleaned regularly eliminates yeast, fungi, bacteria and pathogens that can cause several symptoms that vary from allergy to lung infection.

Plastic bongs

It has been reported that it is possible to taste the chemicals in the water from a plastic water bottle left sitting in a hot car because "...chemicals have leached into the contents of the bottle."It was also reported that it is possible to imagine that this process of chemicals leaching into water occurring with "...a homemade water bottle bong where the bottle is routinely heated up."

It was also reported that "According toCancer Research UK,plastic bottles heated up to 60°C contain unhealthy levels of toxic chemicals. "

Legal issues

A variety of bongs for sale, among other merchandise in Manhattan. For legal reasons, the products are labeled as "Tobacco Use Only".

In theUnited States,under the Federal Drug Paraphernalia Statute, which is part of theControlled 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 mainly cannabis, drug-related connotations have been formed with the word itself (partly due to punning with Sanskritbhangah"hemp" ). Thus for fear of the law manyhead shopswill not serve customers who use the word "bong" or "bongs", or any other word typically associated with illegal drug use.

Somebrand namebong manufacturers (notably RooR) have sought to curb thecounterfeitmarket for their products by suing stores accused of selling fake merchandise.

See also

• Drug paraphernalia
• Hookah
• One-hitter (smoking)
• Gravity bong
• Operation Pipe Dreams
• Thuoc lao
• Vaporizer (inhalation device)

Further reading

• Erika Dugas, Michèle Tremblay, Nancy C.P. Low, Daniel Cournoyer, Jennifer O'Loughlin:Water-Pipe Smoking Among North American Youths,Pediatrics, Published online May 10, 2010,doi:10.1542/peds.2009-2335(Full Text free)

External links

• Erickson, William V.et al.Water pipe or bong. US Patent 4,216,785.
• 2400-year-old Scythian bongs excavated