Consumers Smoke More Pot Than Tobacco – Is That Really Good?

 

I just finished reading the results of a recent Gallup poll showing that more Americans are smoking marijuana than tobacco. The context in which I read the poll results seems to suggest this is a good thing. But is it?

 

I know, tobacco is one of the greatest evils ever foisted upon humanity. Tobacco growers and their cigarette manufacturing counterparts purposely mislead American consumers for decades about the dangers of tobacco only to keep pushing their deadly products on unsuspected victims. At least that is what we have been told for the last 30 years. Why don’t we hear the same types of things about marijuana growers and processors?

 

I suspect it is because marijuana is culturally cool and tobacco is not. Our culture so desperately wants marijuana to become part of the mainstream that proponents are willing to overlook anything and everything about it that might be negative.

 

Smoke Is the Problem

 

It was just about 15 years ago that vaping made is way from Europe to the U.S. Once it caught on here, the long knives came out. Those opposed to vaping complained it was too close to cigarette smoking for comfort. They couldn’t deny that cigarette vapor is significantly less toxic than cigarette smoke, so they decided to go after nicotine. Their argument: nicotine should be avoided because it is potentially addictive.

 

The dirty little secret with tobacco is that nicotine is largely harmless. The problem with cigarettes is the smoke. Whenever you burn tobacco to produce smoke, you also produce thousands of chemicals – many of which are toxic. But guess what? Smoking marijuana requires burning it. And once again, combustion produces harmful chemicals.

 

I don’t deny being curious about the fact that 15% of American adults report smoking marijuana while just 11% report smoking tobacco. But if even one person smoking tobacco is one too many, it is logical to say the same thing about marijuana smoking. That so many consumers are willing and eager to burn marijuana and inhale its smoke and chemicals is troubling.

 

There Are Other Ways

 

It’s true that marijuana smokers aren’t after the smoke itself. Like tobacco users who really just want the nicotine, marijuana users want the THC. But guess what? There are other ways to get it. You do not have to smoke pot. One of the alternatives is vaping.

 

People can vape their nicotine so much more safely than smoking tobacco. Likewise, THC vapes reduce the dangers of using marijuana by taking smoke out of the equation. And by the way, many states with medical cannabis programs don’t allow smoking for this very reason.

 

Beehive Farmacy, the medical cannabis dispensary based in Salt Lake City, UT, says that smoking is prohibited under the Beehive State’s medical cannabis statute. Yet patients can purchase THC vapes along with tinctures, edible products, and other options.

 

Furthermore, Beehive Farmacy personnel say that both vapes and tinctures deliver THC to the bloodstream as quickly as smoking. That makes both options just as effective at relieving patient symptoms. Patients simply do not have to smoke to enjoy the benefits medical cannabis offers.

 

Let’s Be Consistent

 

My only point in putting this post together is to make the case for consistency. It doesn’t make sense to continue dogmatically condemning tobacco smoking while also falling all over ourselves to legalize marijuana smoking. Smoking is bad no matter the substance being smoked.

 

Likewise, if we are going to promote THC vaping as being a good alternative, we shouldn’t be demonizing nicotine vaping. Let us start being consistent. Otherwise, we are being intellectually dishonest about tobacco, marijuana, nicotine, and THC.