You may have heard that marijuana has a lot of benefits, but are still reluctant to try it because you associate it with smoking. Or maybe you’ve been smoking marijuana already and are simply looking for a method of consumption that is easier on the lungs. Either way, you are in luck. Thanks to legalization across the country, this booming industry now has a large variety of products that take many forms. Long gone are the days where smoking marijuana left your living room filled with smoky scent. Here are five alternative methods of getting the benefits of marijuana without smoking it:
1) Vaporizing
One of the most popular methods of consuming cannabis is vaporizing. Vaporizing is a method that allows you to inhale concentrated cannabinoids at a lower temperature than burning the flower of the plant. It doesn’t leave behind a strong odor, and there are a variety of vaporizers to choose from. A bonus is some brands even offer fun flavors and activity specific strains of oils and concentrates.
2) Edibles
Edibles often get a bad reputation, since over-consumption is easy to do when cooking home-baked goods with cannabis in them, the words “special brownies” have a whole new meaning. Now you can find just about anything you could want such as gummies, chocolates, baked goods, drinks, infused oils, and more. Since they are digested, they can take a while to kick in, so start off with smaller doses and wait to see how each dose effects you. Keep in mind digesting cannabis may have stronger psychoactive effects as well.
3) Topical Treatments
If you are using cannabis to help with chronic pain or sore muscles after physical activity, you might try using a topical treatment. There is an astounding selection of lotions and creams that can give you targeted THC treatment that works fast and is effective. This is also a method that has no psychoactive effects, and therefore is great for use at work or when you need to stay focused on the task at hand.
4) Dabbing
Not for first time users, dabbing is a method of vaporizing that involves heating a nail (typically with a small blow torch) with a dab of concentrate and inhaling the vapor through a water pipe with a special attachment. The process is a little more complex than typical vaporizing and requires more equipment. But the result is a more pure, flash vaporized product that can give you greater instantaneous effects. We don’t recommend attempting to do anything productive after dabbing.
5) Oils and Tinctures
Ingestible oils and tinctures are another great way to get the benefits of marijuana. Oils often come in capsule form and take a while to kick in (just like edibles). Tinctures are applied as drops below the tongue and enter the bloodstream much faster. Because each dose typically contains a very large concentration of cannabinoids, these products can be a little more expensive than smoking or vaporizing. They can also require a little bit of experimentation in regards to products and dosage because everyone reacts differently to them.
All of these methods are great ways to give your lungs a rest or experiment with methods that might help you get the most out of your medical marijuana card. Visit your local dispensary and ask which method might be right for you!
