Reykjavík Grapevine - 20.10.2017, Qupperneq 6

ASK A
Derma-
tologist
Q: Why is the water in
the Blue Lagoon good
for your skin?
In Iceland,
since 2007 it’s
been illegal to
smoke indoors
in public
buildings
such as
restaurants,
bars, cafés,
on school grounds,
sport facilities,
and public spaces
inside apartments
buildings. The
list is long, but
you get the idea.
So, it’s no
wonder
why
hookah
bars don’t
exist in Iceland, as
it leads to smoking
indoors. When the
smoking ban was
implemented ten
years ago, polls
showed that the
population was
in favour of it;
only 18% of the
population
was opposed to
the ban.
Hookah,
otherwise known
as shisha smoking,
originates from the
Middle East and
some areas of Asia.
It is popular in the
UK and amongst
young people in
many cultures.
Essentially it’s a
way of smoking
tobacco through
a hose or tube
joined to a bowl,
connected to a
water chamber.
It’s like smoking
for people who
don’t like smoking,
since you can mix
the tobacco with
fruit or sugar. It’s
kind of interesting,
mixing tobacco, a
super unhealthy
substance, with
fruit. It looks really
cool though, and
unfortunately if
you haven’t tried it
outside of Iceland,
it's not happening
here.
In most bars
around Reykjavík
there are small
designated
smoking areas
outside, and if
you’re lucky you
might end up at a
bar with a heated
one too—I like to
call them smokers’
prison. Hookah
bars are kind of
like that, but way
more fancy, with
low lights and gauzy
tapestries. Perhaps
if you bring your
own equipment
and décor, you can
set up makeshift
hookah bar…
it probably won't
be the same
though. JM

There have been some commonalities
between the latest results of Iceland’s
three major polls, Market and Media Re-
search, Gallup, and Fréttablaðið/Stöð 2.
Their results indicate that the left wing
is still coming in strong, while the right
wing is cannibalising itself.
Slow and steady
All three of these polls indicate that the
Leftist-Greens are polling the highest,
or nearly so. As we reported elsewhere
in this issue, their two most likely coali-
tion partners are the Social Democrats,
followed by the Pirates (note: the Pirates
reject “left” and “right” appellations, but
their platform is very much in harmony
with the left). Both of these parties have
been incrementally rising in support. If
they can keep this up, and the Leftist-
Greens maintain or even boost their
lead, a leftist government looks at this
point to be highly likely. Even Prime Min-
ister Bjarni Benediktsson admitted to
this much in a recent interview.
Slow and steady wins the race, as the
saying goes, which then turns our atten-
tion to the right wing in Iceland. There,
things are anything but calm.
Blues implosion
As Grapevine pointed out, the right wing
in Iceland has fractured, for the first
time in the history of the country. While
the Independence Party usually tends to
have an unbreakable base of about 20%,
they haven’t been polling much better
than that recently. But other factors are
at play.
Sigmundur Davíð’s Centre Party is do-
ing surprisingly well. While we predicted
that they would soak up a considerable
portion of the Progressive Party’s sup-
port, we didn’t predict that they would
come to surpass them as well as they are.
The Reform Party, all but wiped out in
most recent polls, has now squeaked in
enough support to win some seats. The
People’s Party, however, has completely
imploded.
News is always breaking
We should bear in mind that the most
recent poll, conducted by Fréttablaðið/
Stöð 2, was done just before news broke
of the injunction against the magazine
Stundin to stop reporting on Bjarni’s fi-
nances based on documents leaked from
Glitnir bank. Bjarni has been in turbo-
defensive mode, categorically denying
any involvement, and insisting that the
injunction makes him and his party look
bad. And he’d be right about that. How
much it will hurt them will come to light
on October 28, when Icelanders cast their
ballots for parliament. Will the polls be
reflected in the results? Stay tuned.
Election Polls
Are A Veritable
Rollercoaster
Left strengthens, and populists implode
Words:
Paul Fontaine
Photo:
Art Bicnick
6The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 19 — 2017First
ArtisAn BAkery
& Coffee House
Open everyday 6.30 - 21.00
Laugavegur 36 · 101 reykjavik
Katrín Jakobsdóttir, leader of VG, the leftist-greens
MISSING IN ICELAND
Hookah Bars
Words: Charley Ward
If you’ve had a dip
in the Blue Lagoon
a n d w o n d e r e d
why your skin felt
a m a z i n g a f t e r-
wards, you’re not
alone. Unlike bor-
ing old regular geothermal water,
the composition of the Blue Lagoon
is unique—you won’t find it anywhere
else in the world. It’s home to a cou-
ple of algae plants also not known
to exist elsewhere. This combination
has been found to have a number of
proven beneficial effects on skin.
Dermatologist Jenna Huld Eysteins-
dóttir explains:
“The Blue Lagoon is manmade, so
it’s unique because it’s a combination
of seawater and the water pumped in
from the power plant. It’s comprised
of 55% seawater and 35% fresh water
and it’s very high in silica.
“Studies carried out on the Blue
Lagoon have shown that the water
prevents premature skin aging and
improves the skin barrier. Scientists
took extracts from the silica and the
two dominating algae types—aka
bioactive molecules—and created a
culture with skin cells. When looking
at the gene expression, they found
that the algae and silica combination
upregulates (increases the response
to a stimulus) the genes that prevent
skin aging and protect the skin.
“The silica seems to have an anti-
bacterial effect. We have other stud-
ies that show it improves psoriasis
to a far greater degree than if you
treat it solely with light therapy. When
you combine UVB treatment with the
Blue Lagoon, you’ll see much quicker
results, and you won’t need as much
light therapy. This means you can
avoid exposing your skin to as much
UV light which can be harmful.”