Is vaping as good as we think/hope?

[guipesa]

After many tests with vaporizer of all kinds, found really my problem, it is not by irritation but by dryness of throat, mouth, nose, it is not due to temperature or dryness of steam, it is by cannabis, it has this side effect to some people more than others, I have tried vaporizer other herbs and I have not had these effects. I want to try cannabis with high CBD and low THC in case it was a solution. Read this article there are thousands on the Web:
http://www.medicalmarijuanaupdate.com/2016-07-06-what-is-cannabis-dry-mouth-syndrome.html

 

[CarolKing]

With vaporizing you are extracting the beneficial oil and leaving the plant matter behind, the ABV. Controlling the heat and allowing you to extract the canabinoids and the terpenes. Combustion is at 446 degrees, I looked that up, I couldn't remember? With vaporizing you get an even extraction, most of the time. I vaporize anywhere between 365 and 390 degrees.

Smoking releases harmful toxins. I'm a singer and I noticed the difference.

To sum it up vaporizers are a wonderful technology that allows the cannabis user the same effects basically from cannabis without most of the unhealthy carcinogens. Best of all you can vaporize your meds without the guilt.

@Alexis so sorry for your illness. We are all different sometimes it's trial and error. You have to do what works well for you.

Another thing cannabis isn't for everybody, especially if it makes you feel worse in the long run. Only you can decide what works.

Edit
Below @Adobewan suggested edibles, an excellent idea. I knew a person who grew their own cannabis. She would blend whole regular cannabis leaves not dried just cut from the plant in a fruit smoothie. She said it was really healthy. I can't vouch for the taste. She said it was full of antioxidants. You wouldnt get the high from it of course.

Having organic cannabis or growing your own may not be an option for everyone unforetunatly.

 

[Adobewan]

Personally I am allergic to cannabis and I suffer major respiratory symptoms when I vaporize. My life is plagued by serious allergies. Every time I eat food my lungs fill up with thick mucus all the way from my mouth, down throat, in intestines.

I have to manage these symptoms 24/7 by using essential oils with and without steam inhalations, a very restricted diet (as diff foods cause a diff level of excessive mucus production), a variety of supplements that help like oil of oregano, spices like cayenne, turmaric, cinnamon, cardamom, garlic etc.

Most supplements cause an unbearable amount of mucus production it is unbearable, like over 95% of supplements if not higher.

I have had long term chronic infections in my lungs since 2005 due to Lyme disease- at least 2 infections in both of my lungs at a time, every single day sonce 2005, at times as many as 6 seperate infections in both lungs at a time, but never less than 2.

So whatever I do I have to live to manage the symptoms. I cant take any other drugs, alcohol is far worse than cannabis in any method, it is very hard for me to relax and de-stress and enjoy life with severe long term depression (due to Lyme disease and being unwell, directly (brain chemistry) and indirectly due to not being able to live life fully and sleep, relax etc, work, have fun basically.)

Hence, I still vaporize cannabis as it is one of the few things I enjoy, amd it enables ,e to enjoy other things in life. I go crazy with stress otherwise so it is the lesser evil, but the allergic reaction is very hard work to deal with.

All this said, it is clear to me, being very in tune with my body and symptoms, that vaporizing weed does enormously benefit my lung health, which is ironic with my allergies!

When my infections are much lower, the allergies are much less, as infections basically cause allergies in the particular area they are located. So my respiratory allergies could and likely will vanish if and when all my lung infections are gone for the first time in 12 years.

I am certain that vaping does support lung health and function, but accept that it does also cause some temporary issues/irritation in the process, largely to do with the heat I think.

A BIG factor in this debate though is the chemicals in weed. The chemical ferts cause irritation, especially to the throat and vocal chords. And they also cause damage, which clean weed does not, however irritating.

I am so badly allergic to all chemical ferts I can only vape weed grown without any fertiliser, except fish blood amd bonemeal from all the organic ferts I have ever treid yet- Im allergic to practically all organic ferts too.

Nature can cause irritation without actual harm, chemicals and synthetic causes irritation AND harm.

So sorry to read of your misfortune @Alexis .
You've probably already tried vaporizing through water to eliminate the heat and some irritation, but if you haven't, you may want to pick up an inexpensive piece of glass.
Another thought, and again, you've probably considered this yourself already due to your dietary issues, is to try edibles.
Best of luck on your journey to better heath.

 

[Alexis]

Thank you both @CarolKing and @Adobewan for your suggestions. Carol I can see that you are clearly a very nice and caring person and you show great sensitivity and tolerance.

I knew a person who grew their own cannabis. She would blend whole regular cannabis leaves not dried just cut from the plant in a fruit smoothie. She said it was really healthy. I can't vouch for the taste. She said it was full of antioxidants. You would get the high form it of course.

This is EXACTLY what cannabis is REALLY for! Seriously. Raw juicing. And actually, as long as the material is freshly harvested and not cured or dried too long, you wont get high from it at all.

The thcv(?- it's either thcv or thca, I think they both exist), the precursor which becomes thc with heat from decarbimg, smoking, cooking, vaping or even drying and curing over time, is a hundred times more medicinal and anti-inflammatory.

It doesnt produce the high, and it allows people to take infinitely higher doses of cannabis with all the full array of medicinal compounds as the intake is not limited by the high.
If weed grew on trees lol we should all be doing this. I really believe this is the purpose of cannabis from a medical viewpoint and its main reason for being on earth.

Im not saying the other methods dont all have their rightful place as well. Im sure the activated thc high has an important role too.
But maybe the culture of cannabis intoxication has gone down the wrong path and is used improperly or overused? I think there is certainly a debate to be had, in the ideal world one day!

@Adobewan your thinking is very appropriate also. Yes for sure I vape primarily through glass. The heat and dryness is arguably one of the biggest causes of irritation. I do much better with water for sure.

I do actually use edibles. They are a true GODSEND for my digestive problems. I cant take many supplements. I have long running intestinal dysbiosis, and I cant tolerate any form of probiotic, either food or supplement. The mucus production is unbearable, even though the probiotics do me the world of good, and move my body towards much better health.

Its ironic. All the healing herbs etc cause too much mucus to handle, but they are very healing in the process.

It is a real catch 22. A rock and hard place. The same goes for digestive enzymes, HCL supplements and all foods that raise low stoamch acid like lemon, vinegar etc.
Too much mucus to live with.
So the edibles are an amazing help with digestion and elimination. However, one caveat of Lyme Disease and the other infections I have, especially neurological viruses called "coxsackie", is severe chronic fatigue syndrome and muscular fatigue.

Edibles are much more muscularly debilitating for me. I also enjoy the vaporizer high much more. However, if the edibles are from sativa plants it is much better. I am a bit stuck for choice. I only can use our own UK outdoor autos. Last year we trialed some organic ferts and Im allergic to them all, so 5 of 8 plants are no good to me. The 3 that are okay got infested with tiny bugs.

I cant get any weed anywhere I am not allergic to (ferts), so I have been going through the buds with tweezers and a lens removing the bugs.
I cant do this on a big batch for edibles, just a gram or 2 at a time for vaping. I get all the bugs out easily, just a PITA takes time.

So my edibles curently are solely from abv infused coconut oil, and the majority of it is a very debiliating indica White Widow auto I will never grow again. It makes me so heavy and lethargic. I use it (the abv oil) only on my vapor breaks, and in small doses while I vape when my digestion needs it.

We have this years autos running now. A better selection, no ferts. All we need is weather and luck and in 10 weeks the situation could be remarkably different.

It is a lot of pressure and anxiety though to know that this is the ONLY chance for the next years supply, relying on UK weather, not to mention other obvious risks.

Nobody should ever be in this position!

Separately, I am curently taking very effective homeopathy for all my infections. The Lyme is very nearly gone actually, just a trace in my nervous system. But the condition cant be corrected and my immune system restored until it is completely gone, as well as the additional viruses in my nervous system.

When the Lyme is gone, that alone could radically improve everyhting, and I will have a much better chance of clearing all my infections and avoiding new ones. I have had hundreds of seperate major infections the last 12 years. I have 5 curently. I get rid of them all, but always get new ones, like a packed nightclub door policy!

So anyway, there is actually great hope. I just gotta stay strong and keep going. Suffering like hell now with intense "die off". But there SHOULD be some SIGNIFICANT improvement fairly soon, with a bit of luck.

Thanks so much for the support and sensitivity people. Happy sundays!

 

[shredder]

Thank you both @CarolKing and @Adobewan for your suggestions. Carol I can see that you are clearly a very nice and caring person and you show great sensitivity and tolerance.


This is EXACTLY what cannabis is REALLY for! Seriously. Raw juicing. And actually, as long as the material is freshly harvested and not cured or dried too long, you wont get high from it at all.

The thcv(?- it's either thcv or thca, I think they both exist), the precursor which becomes thc with heat from decarbimg, smoking, cooking, vaping or even drying and curing over time, is a hundred times more medicinal and anti-inflammatory.

It doesnt produce the high, and it allows people to take infinitely higher doses of cannabis with all the full array of medicinal compounds as the intake is not limited by the high.
If weed grew on trees lol we should all be doing this. I really believe this is the purpose of cannabis from a medical viewpoint and its main reason for being on earth.

Im not saying the other methods dont all have their rightful place as well. Im sure the activated thc high has an important role too.
But maybe the culture of cannabis intoxication has gone down the wrong path and is used improperly or overused? I think there is certainly a debate to be had, in the ideal world one day!

@Adobewan your thinking is very appropriate also. Yes for sure I vape primarily through glass. The heat and dryness is arguably one of the biggest causes of irritation. I do much better with water for sure.

I do actually use edibles. They are a true GODSEND for my digestive problems. I cant take many supplements. I have long running intestinal dysbiosis, and I cant tolerate any form of probiotic, either food or supplement. The mucus production is unbearable, even though the probiotics do me the world of good, and move my body towards much better health.

Its ironic. All the healing herbs etc cause too much mucus to handle, but they are very healing in the process.

It is a real catch 22. A rock and hard place. The same goes for digestive enzymes, HCL supplements and all foods that raise low stoamch acid like lemon, vinegar etc.
Too much mucus to live with.
So the edibles are an amazing help with digestion and elimination. However, one caveat of Lyme Disease and the other infections I have, especially neurological viruses called "coxsackie", is severe chronic fatigue syndrome and muscular fatigue.

Edibles are much more muscularly debilitating for me. I also enjoy the vaporizer high much more. However, if the edibles are from sativa plants it is much better. I am a bit stuck for choice. I only can use our own UK outdoor autos. Last year we trialed some organic ferts and Im allergic to them all, so 5 of 8 plants are no good to me. The 3 that are okay got infested with tiny bugs.

I cant get any weed anywhere I am not allergic to (ferts), so I have been going through the buds with tweezers and a lens removing the bugs.
I cant do this on a big batch for edibles, just a gram or 2 at a time for vaping. I get all the bugs out easily, just a PITA takes time.

So my edibles curently are solely from abv infused coconut oil, and the majority of it is a very debiliating indica White Widow auto I will never grow again. It makes me so heavy and lethargic. I use it (the abv oil) only on my vapor breaks, and in small doses while I vape when my digestion needs it.

We have this years autos running now. A better selection, no ferts. All we need is weather and luck and in 10 weeks the situation could be remarkably different.

It is a lot of pressure and anxiety though to know that this is the ONLY chance for the next years supply, relying on UK weather, not to mention other obvious risks.

Nobody should ever be in this position!

Separately, I am curently taking very effective homeopathy for all my infections. The Lyme is very nearly gone actually, just a trace in my nervous system. But the condition cant be corrected and my immune system restored until it is completely gone, as well as the additional viruses in my nervous system.

When the Lyme is gone, that alone could radically improve everyhting, and I will have a much better chance of clearing all my infections and avoiding new ones. I have had hundreds of seperate major infections the last 12 years. I have 5 curently. I get rid of them all, but always get new ones, like a packed nightclub door policy!

So anyway, there is actually great hope. I just gotta stay strong and keep going. Suffering like hell now with intense "die off". But there SHOULD be some SIGNIFICANT improvement fairly soon, with a bit of luck.

Thanks so much for the support and sensitivity people. Happy sundays!

I hope this is relevent, i have asthma and I've found outdoor grown herbs collect a lot of other plants pollens and dust. This affected my asthma much more than indoor grown herb.

You can however wash freshly taken buds before drying. It might be something you want to try.

Not sure what to make of the fertilizer comments. All plants use nutrients.

I grow organically and most organic plant inputs need to be broken down microbiologically to be available to the plant.

So I actually grow soil by controlling my compost ingredients, and most of my compost is worm castings. So my plants nutrients are made available by worms.

This also may be something for you to look into. Not sure if growing this way could help you, but it is natural and chemical free. Either way best of luck

 

[Alexis]

I hope this is relevent, i have asthma and I've found outdoor grown herbs collect a lot of other plants pollens and dust. This affected my asthma much more than indoor grown herb.

You can however wash freshly taken buds before drying. It might be something you want to try.

Not sure what to make of the fertilizer comments. All plants use nutrients.

I grow organically and most organic plant inputs need to be broken down microbiologically to be available to the plant.

So I actually grow soil by controlling my compost ingredients, and most of my compost is worm castings. So my plants nutrients are made available by worms.

This also may be something for you to look into. Not sure if growing this way could help you, but it is natural and chemical free. Either way best of luck

Thanks Shredder. The soil we make up 3 months in advance. In 15 liter airpots go 3 parts organic compost, 1 part vermicompost (rich in worm casts, but much more as well), 2 handfuls of rock dust and 75 grams of fish blood and bonemeal.

This does actually work very well, providing it is mixed up months in advance. The rock dust and bonemeal are slow release and indeed it is the living microbes that make the nutrients available to the plant over time.

We didnt know last year if this mixture would be sufficient without anything else as it is still quite minimal. The year beforehand we didnt make the pots up early and the plants dropped off and yellowed early and needed more food.

So that is why we also tried bat guano last year on some, and a Humboldt organic liquid feed for others. Those 2 ferts Im very allergic to. The bonemeal and rock dust is okay, and is good enough if pre-mixed. The plants that received the extra ferts did better, smelled more and are stronger but I cant touch it at all.

Thank you also for sharing your experience on outdoor weed and its effects on your asthma. I can believe that. I really would like to grow indoors just isnt an option.
I would just be very paranoid about getting the bud wet and having rot and mold. When we dried it last year in August humidity was sky high as well.

We have to keep rain off the plants when they are flowering or we will lose everyhting to bud rot in our location due to limited sun time and garden direction, and damp weather too.


Means putting up a large umbrella every time it starts raining and stacking them under. We have to do that or we might as well throw it all away, learnt that in previous years!

I did try water curing some of last years weed, I bought a food dehydrator but it is a bad product pumping out nasty toxic plastic fumes and it gave me a terrible respiratory reaction just running it in the house, and soaked into the weed.

So Im naturally cautious abour getting the bud wet. I have only one chance to get an annual supply, and have had year after year of dissappointment with bad weather, fertiliser allergies, bud rot etc. Never once the last 12 years have I had anything close to enough decent weed for myself.

I long for the day when I can hopefully grow indoors. Many thanks man.

 

[organic weed]

I quit vaping about 1.5 years ago because of serious irritation caused by baking. Once in a while I came back to the forum and check developments etc...
All my irritations have gone. I joined an amateur competitive swimming team afterwards and my lung function went up to the roof.
I loved vaping but for me it did not pay the risk and the bill... I felt bad afterwards for days. It was hard to give up at the beginning but now I am very happy of the choice I made. Very happy.
I do eabibles once in a while, less then once per month

 

[Hippie Dickie]

I quit vaping about 1.5 years ago because of serious irritation

just out of curiosity, what vape(s) did you use?

 

[organic weed]

just out of curiosity, what vape(s) did you use?

Plenty, vrip, crafty, pax at all temperatures range and w water tools

 

[C No Ego]

I quit vaping about 1.5 years ago because of serious irritation caused by baking. Once in a while I came back to the forum and check developments etc...
All my irritations have gone. I joined an amateur competitive swimming team afterwards and my lung function went up to the roof.
I loved vaping but for me it did not pay the risk and the bill... I felt bad afterwards for days. It was hard to give up at the beginning but now I am very happy of the choice I made. Very happy.
I do eabibles once in a while, less then once per month

there are certainly times I notice when vapor causes irritation and then others its really smooth... same methods, etc.. just sometimes it seems excessively harsh.. not sure why but really like when it is smooth to soothe

 

[greezygekco]

So I currently own an Air, Iq, Cloud Evo, and a plenty (which I rarely use now); omni vap is my next investment. My current concern is the safety and risk factor of some of the materials used in those vapes.
The air has a rubber ring that holds the stem. The IQ has a silicone gasket and ring (bottom of flavor chamber). The Omni/dynavap has silicone o-rings. The cloud evo uses steel baskets. The plenty has some much plastic involved in its air path. I understand that much of these products/companies use high quality materials but with consistent and high usage of these vapes (many sessions a day for hopefully years), do those materials/components pose any potential risks/hazards? Thoughts? These are products that utilize high temps, electricity, and tons of usage. Thanks!!!

 

[shredder]

So I currently own an Air, Iq, Cloud Evo, and a plenty (which I rarely use now); omni vap is my next investment. My current concern is the safety and risk factor of some of the materials used in those vapes.
The air has a rubber ring that holds the stem. The IQ has a silicone gasket and ring (bottom of flavor chamber). The Omni/dynavap has silicone o-rings. The cloud evo uses steel baskets. The plenty has some much plastic involved in its air path. I understand that much of these products/companies use high quality materials but with consistent and high usage of these vapes (many sessions a day for hopefully years), do those materials/components pose any potential risks/hazards? Thoughts? These are products that utilize high temps, electricity, and tons of usage. Thanks!!!

My thoughts are that vaping is still a shit ton better than smoking joints. And inhaling burnt paper, tars and other combustion products. I wish we had vapes in the 70's, Lol.

As far as I know there are no long term vaping studies, but this site does help in researching different vapes.

For safety, simple might be best. For me, and I have asthma, vaping organic solventless rosin at low temps on a SIC dish, titanium nail and glass pipe is simple, and fairly safe, I think.

I've cut my herb vaping by about 70% since buying my dnail rig. And my lungs do feel better.

For more safety edibles might be best.

 

[kellya86]

So I currently own an Air, Iq, Cloud Evo, and a plenty (which I rarely use now); omni vap is my next investment. My current concern is the safety and risk factor of some of the materials used in those vapes.
The air has a rubber ring that holds the stem. The IQ has a silicone gasket and ring (bottom of flavor chamber). The Omni/dynavap has silicone o-rings. The cloud evo uses steel baskets. The plenty has some much plastic involved in its air path. I understand that much of these products/companies use high quality materials but with consistent and high usage of these vapes (many sessions a day for hopefully years), do those materials/components pose any potential risks/hazards? Thoughts? These are products that utilize high temps, electricity, and tons of usage. Thanks!!!

I too share your concerns for vape safety....
I spent so long poisoning my body, I owe myself some care in what I consume...

So when I choose my vapes carefull and read much about them..
I recently had a query about the pcb in the evo, (on the current page I think), due to someone mentioning the evo smelling...
A question and a bit of reading later, and im satisfied the evo is completely safe...
Stainless steel is pretty well proven, not sure if there are official studies, but we have been using it as humans for a while now, and there seems to be no reports of it causing any trouble...

I also trust arizer products, i know they use lead free solder and med safe materials..
Reputable manufacturers will be checking materials for off gassing...
Like with the volcano and it's aluminium heating core...

Now I'm not saying all vapes are completely safe.... far from it...
New information can always come to light and change the game...
But from what we know now, I think the risk is minimal with a good quality, well chosen vape...
But stay away from cheap crap and Chinese clones..
God knows whats in them...