![Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, October 4, 2017: A man smokes dokha from a medwakh pipe in the neighbourhood near the intersection of Delma and Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed streets in Abu Dhabi on October 4, 2017. On October 1st the government introduced an excise tax on tobacco products and sugar-high drinks, with some prices doubling. Dokha has yet to be added to the list of taxed items though. Christopher Pike / The National
Reporter: Anna Zacharias
Section: News](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/LKW6ED3U5F2V4MIXDRCNF4GSTM.jpg?smart=true&auth=f46d1a016363a83e7b4b6ff0df7aef0ae73c4b1dbf26a7cbb411493efd19e71a&width=400&height=225)
Smoking dokha from a medwakh pipe is harmful but hugely popular in the Gulf. Christopher Pike / The National
Smoking dokha from a medwakh pipe is harmful but hugely popular in the Gulf. Christopher Pike / The National
New study of Emiratis provides further evidence that smoking medwakh leads to heart disease
Medwakh and shisha have been linked to mouth bacteria that can result in heart attacks