By Jay Jay O'Brien
Certified Cannabis Wellness Coach and Educator

November was Lung Cancer Awareness Month. 

Coincidentally, the same month I was made aware I had been living with the disease for some time. 

In searching for ‘alternative’ options to help deal with my symptoms and treat my dis-ease, I re-discovered a plant with which I had a relationship my whole life, Cannabis!

When we re-met, my healing journey was transformed. Cannabis re-introduced itself into my life as an ‘exit’ drug. 

Smoking Cannabis joints instead of tobacco cigarettes helped me to kick the 25-year-long habit, cold turkey, with very few withdrawal symptoms. 

Cigarettes were no longer a burden, but I was still smoking a fair amount of Cannabis joints.

Cannabis assisted my cessation but smoking it didn’t feel like the right choice for me under my current circumstances. This is when I heard about dry-herb vaporization. 

What is dry-herb vaporization? 

Dry-herb vaporization (DHV) happens when Cannabis flower is heated through the process of conduction or convection produced by a handheld or tabletop device that creates an inhalable vapor. 

This vapor, when tested in a study by California NORML and MAPS (Multidisciplinary Association for Psychadelic Studies) contained 95% THC, a few other Cannabinoids and some terpenes. 

Subsequently, the smoke from Cannabis joints contains over 111 different components, including some PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) which are some of the same carcinogenic compounds found in tobacco smoke, proving that vaporization is a much “healthier way” to inhale Cannabis. 

During combustion (smoking), temperatures can reach upwards of 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. During vaporization, temperatures rarely exceed 420 degrees. 

Higher temperatures are responsible for creating many of the toxic chemicals found in the smoke which can cause microscopic damage to the small airways in the lungs. 

What are combustion, conduction and convection, and why do they matter?

Combustion is the act of burning something. When you light the end of a joint, you are ‘combusting’ it. 

Conduction is heating something through direct contact with a heat source. Think of a steak in a frying pan on a stove or a battery on an element heating the liquid in a vape pen.

Convection works by indirectly heating through the transfer of a fluid like water or air in motion. Think of that same steak cooked in the oven or a pot of boiling water. 

Conduction and convection are 2 words that matter when you’re shopping for a dry herb vaporizer. While some vaporizers have the capability to heat through both convection and conduction, most are one or the other.

Conduction and convection vaporizers surpass the combustion method by a mile but when you’re shopping for a vaporizer, convection offers the most well-rounded experience, hence the heftier price tag. 

With conduction, your flower is vaporized sitting on top and around the heat source. It’s hotter and gives you less control. This can result in an uneven burn with a higher risk of overheating your herb and destroying beneficial terpenes.

With convection, your plant material is heated evenly by airwaves that are circulating all throughout your chamber. It never makes direct contact with the flower. It heats the air which produces the vapor resulting in a much cleaner burn with less waste while preserving the medicinal terpenes. 

Does this mean smoking cannabis is bad for you?

It does not. Although there are many who vaporize to reduce the side effects of smoking, smoking Cannabis still provides fast relief for symptoms of pain, nausea & vomiting. It also improves mood, sleep and appetite and is a well-known bronchodilator, meaning it opens up the airways in the lungs. 

Smoking Cannabis does create some of the same cancer-causing toxins as cigarette smoke, still, it is theorized that the beneficial Cannabinoids ingested negate many of the adverse side effects produced with this method. 

The benefits of smoking Cannabis outweigh the harms as seen in this study, vaporizing Cannabis can actually decrease the risks of respiratory effects from smoking. The data reveal that respiratory symptoms like cough, phlegm, and tightness in the chest increase with cigarette use and cannabis use, but are less severe among users of a vaporizer.

How do I vaporize cannabis?

DHV happens through the use of a vaporizer, like the Storz & Bickel Mighty portable or the tabletop Volcano Medic 2, both approved medical devices by Health Canada (also available in the U.S.).

These devices preserve the beneficial terpenes in the plant while removing the dangers of the toxins and heat being produced through combustion.

With conduction or convection devices, you can control the temperature you’re heating your flower at while preserving the medicinal components and preventing the production of harsh chemicals. 

Simply place your fresh or cured flower into the chamber, turn it on and wait for the chamber to heat up. Conduction vapes will heat up a lot faster than a convection vape. After about 20 seconds to a minute, most are ready to operate. 

It is always recommended to "start low and go slow", so typically, 1 or 2 puffs are all that are needed for your first "hit". The effects should be felt almost immediately and can last anywhere from an hour to 4.

Is dry-herb vaporization the same as vaping?

No. Vaping is done with a ‘vape pen’ or ‘vape’ which is a slim, handheld device with a battery and an element that heats a pre-filled cartridge of concentrated Cannabis oil rich in Cannabinoids and terpenes to produce a vapor. Vaping anything other than pure Cannabis oil should be of concern. 

Vaping received a bad reputation after some nicotine vape cartridges containing vitamin e acetate caused over two thousand cases of “popcorn lung” resulting in 68 confirmed deaths in the US.

Nowadays, vape cartridges are prepared using safe practices, but not always, so it’s a good idea to ask for testing or certificates of analysis (COAs) from your local dispensary to ensure you’re consuming a safe product. 

With DHV, there is no processing. You just need fresh flower and your device.

What are the benefits of vaporization to lung health?

The utmost benefit is mitigating the effects of the hot smoke and by-product chemicals created by smoking (combustion). The by-product of vaporization is an aerosol that dissipates without any of the risks of secondhand smoke. 

Vaporized cannabis carries essential medicines, minus the contaminants, directly to the lungs making it a much cleaner way to imbibe.

There are few studies covering the impacts of vaporization on lung health, but of the studies that have been done, not one has been able to find a correlation between vaporizing Cannabis and any lung disease be it cancer, COPD or otherwise and when it comes to smoking Cannabis, “...most studies of lung function in regular Cannabis smokers have failed to find an association with evidence of significant airflow obstruction after adjustment for concomitant tobacco use.”

The one common denominator in the scientific community is that there is a greater need for more research.

Keep an eye on new studies from the University of Kentucky. They are preparing to fill the gaps in the research but in the meantime, the evidence is showing that vaporizing cannabis is far preferred over the other methods. 

New studies will help ‘clear the air’ on Cannabis vaporization which will serve to replace biased studies like this one which states that smoking Cannabis is more harmful than smoking tobacco, when in the fine print, 50 of the 56 “marijuana smokers” were also tobacco smokers.

Tobacco use takes the lives of 480,000 people per year. 

There is not a single reported death from the use of Cannabis. 

In fact, more lives have been saved through the use of Cannabis medicine than have been lost. 

Mine is one of them.

About Jay Jay:

Jay Jay always had Cannabis in her life, but she didn't always have cancer. Offered a diagnosis at 43, a death sentence by her doctors, her Herbalist roots propelled her to seek a way to heal the damage she knew she had created. 

Rekindling a lifelong relationship with Cannabis, Jay Jay discovered that this plant provided more than a way to chill after a hard day's work. It was a medicine with healing potential.

Now, with no evidence of disease, Jay Jay's made it her mission to learn and share all she can about Cannabis and what it's capable of. As a Certified Cannabis Health Coach & Educator with naturalisticallynow & EduCanNation, Jay Jay provides support & guidance 1:1 and in a group setting at the Canecdotal Collective. 

Stay tuned for mid-2023 when the High Hopes for Healing 5-part Educational Series launches.

Effective Cannabis Newsletter is a platform to educate on the vital role of the Endocannabinoid System (ECS) in one's health. The information is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. All content, including text, graphics, images, and information, contained in or available through this newsletter is for general information purposes only. It is not medical advice; it is health awareness.