If you want to use marijuana, but the thought of smoking repels you…
You probably already know that vaping is an amazing alternative.
But what exactly makes vaping so much better than smoking your weed?
Today you'll learn exactly that.
After reading the 5 biggest benefits of vaping vs smoking weed, you will have no doubt left in your mind as to why vaping is the FAR superior alternative!
The best part?
You will learn how you can save huge amounts of herb (and money!) by vaping your marijuana.
Let's begin. First up…
The Issue With Smoking Your Weed
Even though Snoop Dogg and Cypress Hill would be proud of you…
There is a big issue with smoking in general.
Smoking, whether its marijuana, tobacco or any other plant material:
- Irritates;
- Inflames, and;
- Potentially causes irreversible damage to our delicate respiratory system.
Here's why:
Heating plants like marijuana up until their burning point causes the release of toxins, irritants, tar and various carcinogens.
And especially the tar and carcinogens are highly dangerous to your respiratory system, because:
- Tar is scientifically proven to damage lungs, airways and mouth through the numerous toxic elements in it. Plus it covers the cilia in the lungs causing them to stop working and potentially die;
- Marijuana smoke contains at least 50 known cancer causing substances. The most well researched and documented is benzyprene, which alters gene P53, a tumor suppressor gene.
So yes…smoking cannabis long term, has been shown to increase risks of lung cancer.
But even smaller illnesses and conditions like:
- the smoker’s cough;
- wheeze;
- sputum production;
- general airway inflammation;
- trouble exhaling…
…are risks associated with regularly smoking marijuana.
But There Are Studies Which Find No Links Between Smoking Cannabis and Lung Cancer…
I am more than aware of these studies, and definitely am not turning a blind eye to any counter-evidence of marijuana smoke being less destructive than set out above…
The exact explanation for not finding any links between cancer and marijuana smoke in these studies remains unclear.
Supposedly the anti-inflammatory properties of the cannabinoids (like THC & CBD) help protect the lungs from the carcinogens and irritants released by smoking marijuana.
However:
In my humble opinion, a couple of studies not finding any links between smoking cannabis and lung cancer does not disproof the destructive properties of marijuana smoke…
The fact of matter is:
The toxins, irritants, tar and carcinogens produced by the smoking of marijuana do get absorbed by your body.
Whether the protective cannabinoids or any other mechanism counteract the destructive properties of marijuana smoke actually remains to be seen…
As of now there's no clear evidence for this.
All we’re saying is:
Don’t take any single study as gospel!
Use your common sense as well, and when I use my common sense and look at my experiences, I clearly see that marijuana smoke is harmful for the respiratory tract.
Bottom line?
The effects of marijuana smoke on your health are still far from conclusive.
However what is clear is that marijuana smoke definitely can lead to health issues (maybe not cancer, but waking up with so much phlegm in your throat so that you can hardly breathe isn't fun either) …
So ask yourself:
Why take the risk, when there are much healthier alternatives…?
The Solution: Dry Herb Vaporizers
Now if you haven’t been living in a cave tucked away in the mountains of Far-Away-Istan, you surely must have heard about these magical devices called ‘vaporizers'.
These devices are being used by health-conscious individuals all over the world to medicate with marijuana or give up their nasty smoking habit, while keeping the health of their lungs and airways as intact as possible…
So how exactly does a vaporizer work?
They essentially work with the following 3-step process:
- Heat your marijuana to a temperature that’s below its combustion point;
- Convert the active ingredients in your marijuana (cannabinoids, terpenoids and flavanoids) into smokeless & inhalable vapor;
- Get you medicated or propel you to another dimension 😉
The 5 Biggest Benefits of Vaping Weed vs Smoking It
By now you start to see that the biggest benefit of vaping your weed is related to your health.
But as you'll see, the benefits of vaping go much further than health…
Let's start with absolutely the biggest benefit of vaping though:
1. Improve Your Health
The vapor you inhale through this 3-step (vaping) process is almost free from tar, carcinogens and other toxic by-products (95% less than with smoking) and keeps your whole respiratory tract much cleaner than smoking…
…as long as you use the right vaporizer and the right techniques!
What’s more, vaporizing with the right temperature, actually leads to a significantly higher concentration of cannabinoids than in smoke, as found in this study…
Which not only increases the protective qualities of your vapor, but also gives you more bang for your buck!
As with every potential health problem, prevention is KEY.
A quality vaporizer is the key to preventing any respiratory health-related issues that would otherwise be caused by smoking marijuana.
Not only that…
But even if you already have respiratory issues caused by smoking marijuana…
Getting a quality vaporizer could be the solution and here is why:
- Research suggests switching to a vaporizer can reverse respiratory symptoms caused by traditional methods of cannabis intake;
- Even if in the rare case it doesn’t reverse it, at least it will stop further aggravating your lungs and airways.
In other words…the longer you wait getting your vaporizer, the longer you deny yourself the healthy way to use your marijuana!
Now:
Besides these HUGE health-related benefits…
There are several other benefits.
2. Save Your Hard Earned Money
This might sound strange…
But getting, what's often to be thought, an ‘expensive' vaporizer…
Will actually save you large amounts money in the long run, especially if you're a heavy user.
Here's why:
- In cannabis vapor there's up to a 80% more dense concentration of cannabinoids than in smoke (study);
- With a vaporizer, you don't waste much of the goods in your herb. The vapor goes directly from the herb chamber into your mouth. If you light up a joint, you will waste HUGE amounts of herb through the smoke that's simply dissipating from the tip of the joint.
With a vaporizer, you will simply be using much less herb to get the same level of medication.
Over a period of time this can add up into the $1000's (depending on how heavy of a user you are).
3. Get a Cleaner Taste
Although smoking pure marijuana tastes really well…
Here in Amsterdam most people mix it with tobacco, severely altering the taste (in a bad way!).
Plus even if you were smoking pure marijuana, combusting always kind of tastes the same.
With a vaporizer it's much easier to taste all the subtle differences in flavor between different strains.
Because there are almost no toxic by-products, the taste simply is purer /cleaner.
Plus, you can really control your flavor with the temperature settings of your vaporizer, really fine-tuning your vaping experience.
4. Your Clothes and Room Won’t be Stinking of Smoke
One thing that I absolutely hate about smoking is the smell it leaves you with…
Especially in a confined space like a living room, everything the smoke comes in contact with, will be ruined.
With vapor, there's no such thing.
Although you can smell vapor, it doesn't stick into your clothes and dissipates quickly, leaving you clean and fresh.
5. Stop Producing Second-Hand Smoke
Don't you hate it when someone is puffing his cigarettes right next to your face?
Besides the fact that it's annoying as hell, it's extremely unhealthy as well.
As it turns out:
If you vape your weed, you won’t be poisoning anyone with second-hand smoke.
This is especially important if you usually smoke at home.
Because in a confined space like a room, the effects of second-hand smoke are even more disastrous for your health.
But I heard vaporizing actually has some downsides too…
You might have heard:
- Vaporizers don’t get you the same high as smoking weed…
- Vaporizers alter the taste of marijuana in a negative way…
- With vaporizers you actually have to use more marijuana to get the same high…
- It's a hassle to prepare and clean your vaporizer, when all you want to do is just light some up…
I am here to tell you that as long as you use the right vaporizer and the right techniques, these downsides actually get turned into benefits!
How?
Vaping Gives You a Different high
It's true that vaporizers don’t get you the same high as a joint or big hit from a bong for example…smoking has a stronger (not necessarily better though!) effect on the body and the mind, giving you the typical sludgy lethargic feeling, which can be great at times…
…but usually just gets you in such a lazy and lethargic mood, that all you can do is stay locked to the couch.
One possible explanation for this, is that with smoking you absorb a lot of toxins which have an (negative) effect on your body and mental state.
According to most cannaseurs vaping weed actually gets you a much cleaner high, a high in which you are not numbed and glued to your couch…
Instead you will experience a high where you feel more energetic, clean and stimulated!
What’s more, when you choose the right vaporizer, the potency and density of your vapor, will be so strong that you will get a very strong buzz, very similar to smoking in terms of intensity…except in a much cleaner and clear-headed way.
Vaping Gives You a Different Taste
It ‘s also true that low-quality vaporizers, or more generally, vaporizers making use of low-quality materials suboptimal for vaporizing, severely alter the taste of your weed in a negative way.
What you have to realize though…is that high quality vaporizers actually will give your marijuana a much cleaner and flavorful taste than smoking!
High quality vaporizers only use materials which are optimal for preserving the taste of of your herb…or of such a high quality that it won't negatively affect the taste of your herb in a way that's actually noticeable (unless you're a flavor-Nazi like me).
The best part?
With a high quality vaporizer you will taste all the delicate and subtle differences in flavor between strains, and you will finally be able to really pick the strain which tastes the best.
Do You Need More Marijuana?
Absolutely not.
Especially with high quality vaporizers there is simply no way you will ever need more marijuana to obtain the same effects from your herb.
As a matter of fact…you will need way less quantity to obtain the same effects.
You might be wondering…how?
- Vaporizing leads to a much higher concentration of cannabinoids for you to inhale than regular smoking with the same quantity of herb, smoking/burning actually leads to the destruction of a significant part of the cannabinoids.
- Burning marijuana (as it is with regular smoking) actually makes many of the compounds inside of your herb continue to dissipate into the air whether you are inhaling them or not. With vaporizers there's still some of this going on…but it's WAY LESS.
If you’re still not convinced of the cost-efficiency of vaporizing…don’t take my word for it, take the word of 953 participants who came to this exact same conclusion in this study.
How Much Time Do I Need to Prepare and Clean My Vaporizer?
It's hard to give a general answer to this question as in general this depends on the vaporizer you have…
Preparation time with any on-demand vaporizer is usually just 10-20 seconds. Session-vaporizers need a little bit longer…usually around 1 to 3 minutes.
Cleaning really depends on the brand and type of your vaporizer, with some vaporizers needing virtually no cleaning, to vaporizers which need a little more extensive cleaning (glass parts, whip, bowl, screens, etc.).
What's Next?
IF after reading this post, you've come to the very intelligent realization that vaping weed is better for you than smoking it…
I suggest you read our dry herb vaporizer buyer's guide, before you get a vaporizer that matches your style and budget:
Because vaporizers truly can be a technical jungle for any cannaseur new to vaping (in my opinion you can't be a real cannaseur if you're not vaping…but that's a discussion for another time).
This guide is your machete, with which you'll clear up the technical jungle and only the bare essentials will be left…so no vaporizer will have any secrets left for you.
And when you want to look really smart for your friends…click the share button below to share this article on your favorite social media platform.
