Vaporizing marijuana releases far fewer harmful chemicals than smoking joints does, according to a new study.
“These results demonstrate that combustion—not cannabis itself—is the primary driver of harmful inhalation byproducts, and that controlled vaporization can significantly reduce exposure to these compounds,” the study conducted and self-published by the vape device company PAX found.
Lighting marijuana on fire through smoking releases a number of harmful or potentially harmful compounds (HPHCs)—including benzene, formaldehyde and acetaldehyde. Vaporization, in contrast, heats cannabis to below the point of combustion while still releasing cannabinoids and terpenes.
The research—conducted by Richard Rucker, who serves as PAX’s director of product integrity, and Derek Shiokari, a senior chemist and data scientist at the company—compared aerosol generated by PAX’s dry herb vaporization device (FLOW) and its oil vaporization device (TRIP) with smoke from combusted marijuana joints.
The team compared levels of 16 HPHCs between the methods of consumption, all using the same batch of ground Lemon Cake Batter cannabis from Humboldt Farms.
“Across all measured analytes, vaporization reduced harmful byproducts by up to 99% compared to joint smoke,” they concluded.
Via PAX.
“Combustion produces harmful byproducts—whether it’s tobacco, wood or cannabis,” Rucker said in a press release. “By heating cannabis without
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