Is it the chemical makeup of nicotine vs THC/CBD? Given the fact they are both smoked, and burnt plant matter are both inhaled in the lungs, it is said that burnt tobacco smoke is more carcinogenic than cannabis smoke. Also, cannabis is used medicinally and therapeutically whereas tobacco is not.
Edit: I am aware that cannabis is better used medicinally as a tincture or in a non-smoked method (i.e. edibles). That would be the safest method of consumption.
In: Other
Cannabis contains higher quantities of the carcinogenic chemicals found in tobacco. In equal amounts, cannabis is actually much more harmful to you. However, most tobacco smokers smoke a lot more tobacco (or what’s commonly referred as “chain-smoking”) versus a cannabis user who often smokes very little in comparison.
Cannabis is actually more harmful to you but tobacco smokers usually smoke much more tobacco therefore tobacco tends to be more harmful due to the addictive nature of nicotine.
Please refer to u/NormalTechnology post above I was unaware of this
There’s actually debate as to if, puff for puff, tobacco or marijuana is worse; my understanding is that marijuana may actually be more harmful, in part because the smoke is much hotter.
A lot of it is because it’s rare for even the most stoniest stoner to smoke 20+ joints a day, while pack-a-day smokers are fairly common. Most cigarette smokers are having many cigarettes a day, while many marijuana users may only smoke a few times a month.
Nicotine paralyzes the cilia in the lungs, which would ordinarily flush out nasty foreign stuff. That’s why smoking is synergistic with nearly any other lung contaminant, radon and asbestos included.
I suspect “it is said” by sellers and fans of cannabis. Cannabis is now a barely regulated, $13 billion industry. When there’s that much money in play, hucksters and marketers start to spin tails. Truth is that smoke from burning plant matter is always carcinogenic.
Also, nicotine actually is used medicinally for things like Parkinson’s. You tend not to hear about it because it’s going through actual clinical trials rather than grower marketing.
The top answers are incorrect. The really deadly compounds are *tobacco specific nitrosamines (*[TSNAs)](https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.chemrestox.0c00367), which is not really an explain like I’m five answer. As the name implies, they are amines specific to the tobacco plant primarily produced during the curing process and are what make it uniquely carcinogenic compared to other generic plant combustion. No one says it’s good to light something on fire and inhale it. But the fact remains that tobacco in particular contains unique compounds that are extra bad. Not the nicotine, not the plethora of miscellaneous organics that get combusted… TSNAs are what set it apart.
The explain like I’m five version is, well, tobacco in particular is much worse for you because of the stuff in it.
TSNA also appear to be broken down by pasteurization as evidenced by their absence from snus products compared to their high presence in snuff and cigarettes. Hypothetically, one might be able to produce a safer cigarette by pasteurization, but legally you would never be able to say that.
I’m no expert but the thing that strikes me is a tobacco smoker has a much much greater number of inoculations in the course of a given time period as compared to a cannabis smoker
There’s a lot of nasty shit in a cigarette besides the tobacco, just look at any package. It’s a far cry from just drying out the plant and rolling it up like with weed.
But what about “pure” tobacco leaves like when e.g. native Americans smoke. Would that be considered cleaner than todays tobacco in cigarettes?
Here’s a 2008 study on the epidemiology of cancer and marijuana use:
https://erj.ersjournals.com/content/31/2/280
Conclusions: smoking marijuana does indeed appear to increase risk of cancer. Apparently, on average, one joint is about equal to twenty cigarettes in terms of increasing risk. See “Discussion”, which describes the many problems inherent in studying the subject.
My dad smoked 50 cigarettes a day. So aside form Snoop and Willy, few people who toke are getting anything close to the level of carcinogens.
Latest Answers