With all the innovations and improvements in many aspects such as technology to generations, cannabis has not been spared from these changes. To vaporize or to smoke is a sign of not only technological advancements but also societal progression, in general.
In today’s time, vaporizing cannabis has become a trend, and wherever you go, people are trying this method. This may have been a result of the increase in the level of acceptance and legalization of the use of cannabis, which made people look for the most convenient yet satisfying way to enjoy it, and vapes have become the method that fulfilled these qualities. You can visit parks, musical festivals, parties, or hangout places, and there is a high chance that someone is vaporizing cannabis.
However, even with all these, not all users and enthusiasts of cannabis have been convinced that vaporizing is the new way to go. Discussions and the search for the better methods, whether to vaporize or to smoke, are still going on. Personal preference plays a significant role in this matter, but here is everything you need to know to decide whether to vaporize or to smoke your cannabis.
Definition of Vaporizing
Vaporizing involves someone inhaling the vapor given off by the instrument used in this method called the vaporizer, which heats the cannabis concentrates or the flowers up to a specific temperature enough to bring it to a boil. Vaping has become very popular since 2016, and its popularity has been increasing as the years pass by.
Benefits from Vaporizing Cannabis
After vaporizing was introduced to the market, it has become very popular, and the increase in its popularity has become exponential over the years. One of the major reasons that made this possible is because of the true benefits and satisfaction that it gives users from the moment they decide on the choices to vaporize or smoke their cannabis. Even the fans of vaporizing cannabis are yet to grasp how much benefits vaporizing your cannabis brings.
Health Benefits
When we decide whether to vaporize or smoke our cannabis, one of the major considerations is how it affects our health and overall well-being. It has been known that any of the methods are purely healthy, but vaporizing is far healthier when both are being compared. This is because with vaporizing, a lower temperature is involved.
Whether to vaporize or to smoke, your cannabis both involves the entering of very hot substances into your lungs. However, with smoking, hot smoke accompanied by unhealthy chemicals will be inhaled due to the process of combustion that occurs during burning. On the other hand, vaping allows the inhalation of vapor with a significantly lower temperature than with smoking. The chemicals resulting from combustion are not to be worried about anymore.
Also, it was already recognized that smoking causes damage to the skin, while vaping, on the other hand, might be helping your skin to become better. When vaping, the cannabinoids present in the Cannabis are being preserved and inhaled by the user because of the lower temperature involved in the process of vaping. This is unlike smoking, which burns off the majority of the cannabinoids present in your buds. These cannabinoids have been observed to significantly affect the skin’s improvement, even though stronger research is yet to be performed.
Better Taste and Scent
Terpenes are the components present in cannabis that builds up its taste and scent. When you choose to vaporize or smoke, cannabis also affects the taste and scent since, with smoking, almost all the terpenes present in cannabis get burnt. The user never really gets to appreciate the authentic taste and scent of cannabis. With vaporizing, however, these terpenes are preserved, and the user will be able to truly recognize whether or not the cannabis tastes like actual chocolate or whatever flavor it says. Also, the odor given off when vaping is not too intense that it will not stick too much to the furniture and the clothes of the user after taking it.
Better High
Though the characteristics of the high may vary from person to person, testimonies, and feedback from users have shown that those who choose to vaporize their cannabis have experienced a better high. This may also be a result of the very convenient and simple process involved in vaping, and the exclusion of complicated paraphernalia and steps. Another cause might also be the non-involvement of harsh chemicals. Several other reasons might have accumulated that made this possible, but users feel more clarity and a generally better high with vaping.
Efficiency Experienced with Vape
With all the possibilities enabled because of the features of vaping, this method has been proven to promote greater efficiency and allows consumers to make the most out of every gram of the product bought. This is mainly because vaping does not burn off the substance, unlike as much as how smoking burns it off.
Furthermore, cannabis flower that has been vaporized already can even be reused. For instance, you can turn it into a cannabutter, allowing it to become another useful and enjoyable product like a tasty edible. Through this, it will not even be needed because the chemicals have already been activated during vaporizing. You may also opt to be very direct as you reuse vaporized flowers and insert it in a capsule and swallow them right away for intense effects.
More Precise Temperature Control
As presented in the data above, one of the major edges of vaping when compared to smoking is that it allows a lower temperature that allows this method to be healthier and more efficient for users. To add to this, middle-range to high-end vapes even have a feature that will enable the user to control the temperature you will be vaping at. With this, you are more in control of the quality of your cannabis experiences, such as in terms of the smoothness, the intensity of the hit, and the amount of cannabinoids.
Negativities That Vaporizing Cannabis May Bring
Even though vaping is a product of the advancement of technology, and though it was designed to bring improvement in several aspects of the cannabis experience, some negativities still exist.
Investment is Necessary
To be able to start vaporizing your cannabis, the first requirement is to own a device. There are several options in the market to choose from but, just like other products, you will get what you pay for. Meaning, if you want a vape with better specs, you will have to spend more. A vape that would last for quite some time may cost a minimum of €100 and go higher to as much as more than €200.
Negativities That Vaporizing Cannabis May Bring
Even though vaping is a product of the advancement of technology, and though it was designed to bring improvement in several aspects of the cannabis experience, some negativities still exist.
Maintenance
Similar to all technological devices, a vape pen will need to be maintained and handled properly. In the glass case, merely the use of rubbing alcohol and salt or soap and hot water will do. However, in the case of vapes, there will be a detailed procedure that has to be followed to be able to clean the vape pen thoroughly, and this cleaning process is necessary to maximize the vaporizing experience. Aside from this, there is also a need to keep the vape’s battery charged. Just like when we use our phones, we tend to forget charging sometimes and imagine how annoying it will be to be outside of the house or to be hanging out with your friends to vaporize your cannabis only to find out you are out of battery.
The Need to Learn
Since the vape pen is a device, some buttons or instructions will be followed to make it work and make the most out of all the available functionality. People having trouble familiarizing themselves with technology will have to deal with a similar problem coping with the vape. Not all vape pens have similar features as some may have more specs than the others, such as the temperature controls and some other multiple buttons. It can be an easy task for some and be such hard work for some, but no matter your level, there will be a need to learn.
Waiting Time for Heating
Just like the way you use your oven in the kitchen, vape pens will need a specific heating time. Though this will not take a significantly long time, it will surely need some minutes, which can be a source of disadvantage for vaporizing.
Smoking Defined
Smoking can be applied not only to cannabis, but it has the same definition regardless of the substance being smoked. In the case of cannabis, this includes the use of a lighter and burning the cannabis and inhaling the smoke that comes out.
Benefits You Can Gain from Smoking Cannabis
Very Simple and Hassle-Free
As compared to the complicated devices of today’s time, like vape, smoking and other more traditional methods are very simple to do and are hassle-free. In smoking cannabis, you will not need to know and follow a lot of instructions and procedures. You will only need to roll your cannabis in a joint paper, use a filter if you would like, and then you’re good to go. You can still opt to use some other accessories such as bongs, pipes, or bubblers, but all you will need is a bowl, then you can already light it up and inhale. With this, anyone, regardless of experience or ability to follow instructions, will be able to freely enjoy the cannabis experience.
Traditional and Nostalgic Rituals
For veterans and the original enthusiasts of cannabis, grinding, rolling, and lighting up the cannabis during the process of smoking may bring back good memories that promote relaxation and add to the actual enjoyment and pleasure to the entire cannabis experience. This is subjective, but we will never be able to disregard that the joys brought by gold memories will not be similar when you decide to vaporize or smoke cannabis.
More Intense Hit
There is no actual basis or scientific evidence that can support claims that one between to vaporize or to smoke will bring a more intense hit. However, people who experience and feel the effects of inhaling the smoke from cannabis will be able to testify how this affects them. It may be the placebo effect at work but, their opinion and level of satisfaction still matter.
Negativities Smoking Cannabis may Bring
Like vaporizing cannabis, no matter how much benefits smoking cannabis may bring, the negativities that it can cause still exist.
Dangers to Health
Lighting up an actual fire and burning your cannabis are procedures that need to be done before being able to inhale the smoke and the other chemicals from it. These pose actual dangers to the health of the users. In this process, chemicals such as tar and carbon monoxide are included in what you are inhaling ang go directly to your lungs. It is not the same as smoking cigarettes, but it is particularly almost the same. Over the years, it will cause actual health damage, and lung cancer is an actual risk that needs to be considered.
Inability to Make the Most Out of the Cannabis
Scientific evidence and studies suggest that smoking cannabis will directly burn the majority of the cannabinoids and will leave only 25% of the cannabis to be taken in. This number is significantly lower when compared to vaporizing, enabling the user to inhale 95% of the substances present in cannabis.
Inability to Taste Cannabis
Because smoking burns the majority of the cannabinoids, terpenes are not spared in this phenomenon. Terpenes are the compounds responsible for the scent and taste of cannabis. The burning of this will disable the users to identify and enjoy the natural scent and taste of the cannabis.
Insignificant Control
Because the process of smoking involves lighting up an actual fire, this is something that the consumer cannot directly control. This means that the entire process of smoking cannabis cannot be under the direct control of the user and that the hit, the effect, and the quality of the overall experience, will not be under the direct influence of the one smoking. This is one of the most evident differences that will be encountered when the user chooses whether to vaporize or smoke since vapes permit better control.
Bottomline
Whether to vaporize or to smoke, your cannabis has its benefits and downsides. When it comes to health measures, vaporizing your cannabis is the way to go. However, when it comes to simplicity and inclusivity, smoking cannabis will be more beneficial. All of these mean that personal preference and goals will play an essential role in determining whether vapor or smoke will be the best method to allow consumers to make the most out of their cannabis.