Teen Trend Includes Smoking "Legal Marijuana"

EL PASO, TX - A growing trend in the city has teens smoking out of water pipes, and what they smoke can include what's considered a "legal marijuana."

A hookah is a water pipe for tobacco that more teens are starting to use.

"They're discovering it here in El Paso, it's getting more popular, but I don't think it's geared strictly towards kids," Brad Maynard said.

Maynard is the owner of Kern Place Cigars. He sells hookahs and the sheesha, the flavored tobacco that's smoked. It comes in everything from Grape to Watermelon and other flavors that teens like.

"It's kind of funny because you'll ask them 'Can I see your ID please,' and they'll say 'Oh I left it in the car,' then you'll never see them again," Maynard said.

Maynard told us parents should be concerned about their kids smoking hookah, because it's not much different from cigarettes.

"If you get into smoking a couple of bowls every night it will eventually cause you problems just like cigarettes will."

Another concern parents may have is that marijuana can be smoked out of a hookah. Maynard says it can, but that's not what a hookah's made for.

"On the other hand if they're smoking pot they're going to smoke it anyway. I don't think hookah leads to smoking pot or anything else, but I'd still have a concern," he said.

There's another product to watch out for, it's called salvia and it is considered a "legal marijuana." Maynard refuses to sell it.

"I think there has been a couple of people who have died from salvia, it's a rare occurrence but I think it has happened. I don't really want to sell something I think is going to really cause some serious harm to one of my customers."