08
Aug 2018
Vaping Marijuana vs. Edibles: What’s the Healthiest Way to Use Marijuana
People around the globe swiftly realize some of the many healing effects cannabis produces. Because cannabis use has dramatically increased across society, so have the numerous ways to absorb the powerful medicinal elements of the super plant. Most commonly, patients and recreational users take marijuana and release the cannabinoids by igniting the plant at high temperatures, inhaling the smoky and unhealthy by-product. While this is the most traditional method of marijuana consumption, it’s not the only option. Health-minded marijuana users have creatively come up with other options to release their favorite cannabinoids. Today, there are much healthier ways to use your marijuana of which the 2 most common ones are:- Vaping, and;
- Edibles.
Health Benefits Associated with Marijuana Use
Technology and medicine have progressed at such rapid rates that innovation has become the name of the game in the marijuana industry. Millions of dollars of research and science have gone toward the study and cultivation of the powerful cannabis plant.
The numerous health benefits that marijuana has been linked to are innumerable and include depression, insomnia, and auto-immune diseases. Patients and their doctors have reported success using the plant for the treatment of many illnesses and disorders.
Marijuana is a powerful plant with hundreds of naturally occurring chemical compounds found inside. Some of the more widely-known of these compounds include THC and CBD.
While tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, provides the mind-altering capabilities that many may associate with the use of marijuana; CBD is arguably the most powerful of the compounds found within the plant. Cannabidiol, or CBD, has been positively linked to reducing the dramatic effects of diseases such as epilepsy, anxiety, and many others.
People suffering from chronic pain have been prescribed marijuana with amazing results. Patients have reported their chronic pain has been alleviated thanks to the healing qualities of marijuana and the chemical compounds it contains.
Marijuana has also been successfully used to help cancer patients cope with nausea and weight loss. The medicinal benefits of this plant are far-reaching. It has been found to be useful in nearly every medical field it has been studied in.
Potential Health Issues Linked To Traditional Consumption Methods
While there are many recorded benefits linked to marijuana use and consumption, some scientists believe there are possible links between negative health effects and traditional consumption methods of marijuana. Traditionally, marijuana was consumed through a heated combustion process usually associated with water pipes and paper wrapped joints and blunts. These methods required the use of heat at high temperatures to release the cannabinoids. The topic is currently undecided today, but some scientists argue the high heat and thick smoke release toxic carcinogens into smoker’s lungs.
While research is still underway, some scientists and doctors have been wary of the toll marijuana smoke may have on users lungs. The American Lung Association notes that smoke is harmful to lung health. Although research is still being conducted on this topic, some marijuana users have tried to avoid the potentially harmful effects on their lungs that traditional consumption methods might produce. These health-minded marijuana users have successfully found newer, and safer methods of consuming cannabis.
New Methods for Consumption
One of the newest, safest, and most popular forms of marijuana consumption today is vaping. Vaping utilizes a heating process that employs either convection or conduction heating. Vaporizers release the healing chemicals found in marijuana without (most of) the potentially harmful side effects of traditional smoking methods.
They produce a smokeless water vapor that is almost free from the potential carcinogens of traditional smoking methods. While vaping has become very popular among marijuana users, it is not the only consumption method available that’s different than smoking.
Even with the latest medical advancements of vaporizers, some marijuana users decided to leave behind the smoke and water vapor completely. But, still wanting to experience the healing effects of marijuana they (re)found a way to obtain their fill.
Although edibles have been around for decades, they only have become more popular within the marijuana industry in the past decade (because of all the legalization efforts mostly).
Edibles are a consumption method that involves putting the healing chemicals of marijuana into baked goods. These marijuana-infused “edibles” are then eaten rather than smoked. Each of these two consumption methods has their own pros and cons, which we will look at next.
Vaping
Although vaping reduces 95% of the toxins, traditionally found in (marijuana) smoke…
There’s still that 5% of toxins which can be a deal-breaker for some of you.
You also have to realize the higher your temperature while vaping, the more toxins you will be releasing.
For example:
If you go above 392°F(200°C), you risk inhaling benzene, which is a known carcinogen. It will still be WAY less than you would inhale while smoking…
But if you want to minimize risks to the best of your ability, you have to be careful with your temperature while vaping and keep it below this level.
Luckily, this is very easy with modern dry herb vaporizers.
But there are more risks with vaporizers.
Depending on what type of vaporizer you exactly have, there’s sometimes a risk to combust your herb. Whether this is a risk with a vaporizer is really dependent on the technology used in the vaporizer, and this mostly applies to older vaporizers or butane-based vaporizers. Always read up on the techniques you have to you use while using a specific vaporizer to avoid this.
Lastly, there’s the risk of using a vaporizer which uses dangerous materials (for your health). Because vaporizer reaches a high temperature it’s extremely important that your vaporizer is made of clean and heat-resistant materials. You don’t want to be inhaling things like lead or mercury which are leaking off of a fake ceramic heating element.
To be sure you have a vaporizer with the right materials in it, it’s important that you do your research and get your vaporizer from a transparent company. If a company is not transparent about the insides of its vaporizer or the materials used in it, this definitely is a red flag and you would do better to avoid this particular company.
As you can see, vaping does bring some health risks with it, but they are quite easily avoided if you do your research well.
In addition to the added health benefits, these discrete vaporizer pens have become increasingly popular because they allow the user to reap the medical benefits of marijuana on-the-go. The size of a regular pen, these vaporizer devices are the ultimate mobile sidekick for those cannabis users hoping to bring their medicine with them. Plus, it’s 100 times easier to micro-dose with them than compared to edibles for example.
Nonetheless, edibles are the preferred consumption-method for a significant amount of marijuana users.
