The Benefits of Vaping Weed

Here at SacredMeds, we like vaping our herb. With some of the most finely curated British Columbian cannabis strains around, taste, flavour, and experience are what cannabis culture is all about. The benefits of vaping weed kick combustion to the curb. From saving cash to saving your health, here are our favourite reasons for vaping weed.

The Health Benefits of Vaping vs Smoking Weed

Lung health is easily the most important reason to switch from smoking joints to vaping weed. If you smoke weed regularly, transitioning to vaping will have a powerful positive impact on your lung health. If you’re still on the fence, for a deeper contrast between smoking and vaping, check out our blog article ‘Smoking vs Vaping’. The bottom line is that eliminating inhaled polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons will dramatically improve your overall health.¹

While smoking weed is less healthy than vaping weed, scientific studies have been lacking. The recent rise of marijuana legalization across the world increases the urgent need for conclusive and confident scientific recommendations.

There is a rapidly growing body of studies exploring vaporization as an alternative to other cannabinoid delivery mechanisms.^4,5,7,8 Overwhelming anecdotal evidence has drawn unavoidable conclusions. Over the years, scientists have repeatedly acknowledged that these anecdotes need to be backed up quickly. Weed is an effective, mostly self-prescribed medicine, and “increasing its safety has the potential to improve quality of life.”²

Because there are so many products to choose from and some of them are expensive, making a final decision can be hard. Sometimes making the transition can seem daunting. If you’re looking to leave combustion behind and need tips, we’ve put together ‘Vaping Cannabis: What You Need to Know’.

AVBs Make Vaping a Worthy Investment

Everyone likes a two-for-one sale, right? If you vape herb, you are getting a twofer deal every time you buy weed because Already Vaped Buds (AVBs) are included. What’s the big deal about this by-product?  “The resin has disappeared, and trichomes have withered, but non-incinerated fibrous material remains.”² AVBs are golden brown, lightly toasted, and fully decarboxylated, meaning they are ready for use in edibles. The opposite of effort for incredible returns.

A primer on what you need to know about using AVBs can be found on our blog ‘What To Do With Already Vaped Buds (AVBs)‘. If you’ve been tossing your AVBs, it could take a while to stockpile enough to make oil or butter with. If you vape herb daily, you should have an ounce or 28 g of AVBs within a month or so.

It’s a bit of a shame to decarboxylate premium herb in the oven instead of slowly savouring it over time. But, if you’re looking for immediate gratification, we’ve got you covered. You can always find an ounce of an amazing cannabis strain on special. Tip: While it is tempting to buy on a flavour profile, look for THC content instead. More THC means more potent AVBs.

From there, you can follow the recipes in our blog ‘Cooking with Cannabis 101: Tip and Tricks for perfect Edibles’. Alternatively, you can just indulge in some premium edibles if all this talk of making your own has made you hungry.

Vaping Weed Smells Better

Let’s be honest, when you smoke a joint indoors, it stinks the place up. Outdoors, the smell draws attention. It sticks to your clothes and hair. It draws a perimeter of odor around you that has an unavoidable stigma attached to it.

The optimal heat for vaping herb is 100° Celcius or 212° Fahrenheit. Not only does vaping at these temperatures produce a different smell, but a vastly improved product. At these temperatures, terpenes and flavonoids turn gaseous. When you smell vaped weed, what you smell is the actual aroma of cannabis. Not only does the vapor smell better than smoked weed, but most of that vapor is absorbed into your lungs. Exhaling vaped weed is a completely different animal from exhaling combusted weed.

Our article ‘Cannabis 103: A Guide to Terpenes’ details the aroma and effects of many terpenes found in cannabis. When you vape weed you can fully explore this variety for yourself.

Vaping Weed Tastes Better

At 1100° Celsius (2012° Fahrenheit) smoking weed does more than burn off those delicate terpenes. You are also destroying flavonoids. Just like the vaped odor of weed is an indicator of its benefits, the resulting flavors are also a payoff. A good vape will allow you to accurately set your sessions to temperatures somewhere between 180° and 212° Fahrenheit. Vaping weed in this range produces delicious, flavorful vapour. You have not tasted cannabis strains like Blueberry Kush or Cherry Diesel until you have vaped them.

Vaping Weed Gets You Higher

The entourage effect is all about the combined effect and experience of terpenes and flavonoids with cannabinoids. Through controlled, lower heat, vaping cannabis extracts as much as 36-61% of cannabinoids from the original unheated sample.³

Save Money By Vaping Weed

When you’re absorbing a minimum of 30% of the cannabinoid content of your weed, you know you’re saving money. You are using less product to get more effects and benefits. None of the herb is getting burnt during the puff-puff-pass of a joint.

Also, the simple logistics of smoking a joint leads to waste of product, as it continues to smolder when you are not toking. A vape is designed for efficiency, with the vast majority being powered by your draw. If you’re not toking, nothing goes to waste in a vape.

Vaping Weed is Efficient

Although rolling joints can be quick (depending on who does it) good quality vapes are easy to load and quick to heat. You can find an efficient vape pen, portable, or desktop vaporizer that works for you. Many disposable vapes are ready to go, not requiring a charge, or even that you pack the bowl. Even the most impressive desktop vape that appears somewhat complicated is designed for simplicity and enjoyment. If you’re interested in getting a vape for yourself, try the Arizer Solo, the number one most recommended personal vape available today!

References

1 Abdel-Shafy, H. I. and Mansour, M. S. M. (2016) “A review on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons: Source, environmental impact, effect on human health and remediation,” Science Direct, Egyptian Journal of Petroleum, [online] Available from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1110062114200237 (Accessed 19 January 2021).

2 Earleywine, PhD, M. and Smucker Barnwell , S. (2007) “Decreased respiratory symptoms in cannabis users who vaporize,” Harm Reduction Journal, BMC: Part of Springer Nature, [online] Available from: https://harmreductionjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1477-7517-4-11 (Accessed 2 March 2021).

3 Gieringer, D., St. Laurent, J. and Goodrich, S. (2004) “Cannabis Vaporizer Combines Efficient Delivery of THC with Effective Suppression of Pyrolytic Compounds,” Journal of Cannabis Therapeutics, Vol. 4(1) 2004, California NORML, [online] Available from: https://www.canorml.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/jcantgieringervapor.pdf (Accessed 2 March 2021).

4 Hazekamp, A., Ruhaak, R. and Zuurman, L. (2006) “Evaluation of a vaporizing device (Volcano) for the pulmonary administration of tetrahydrocannabinol,” PMC US National Library of Medicine, [online] Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16637053/ (Accessed 2 March 2021).

5 Loflin, MA, M. and Earleywine, PhD, M. (2015) “No smoke, no fire: What the initial literature suggests regarding vapourized cannabis and respiratory risk,” PMC US National Library of Medicine, [online] Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4456813/ (Accessed 19 January 2021).

6 Pascual, A. (2021) “Insights into 20 years of organic growth, profitability at marijuana vape maker Storz & Bickel,” Marijuana Business Daily, [online] Available from: https://mjbizdaily.com/insights-into-20-years-of-organic-growth-profitability-at-marijuana-vape-maker-storz-bickel/ (Accessed 2 March 2021).

7 Spindle, T. R., Bonn-Miller, M. O. and Vandrey, R. (2020) “Changing landscape of cannabis: novel products, formulations, and methods of administration,” PMC US National Library of Medicine, [online] Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7041884/ (Accessed 2 March 2021).

8 Spindle, PhD, T. R., Cone, PhD, E. J. and Schlienz, PhD, N. J. (2018) “Acute Effects of Smoked and Vaporized Cannabis in Healthy Adults Who Infrequently Use Cannabis: A Crossover Trial,” PMC US National Library of Medicine, [online] Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6324384/ (Accessed 16 January 2021).