Short answer : in absolute terms, smoking weed creates more tar and other nasty compounds than tobacco.
However, you normally smoke a **lot** less weed than your do tobacco.
Second, substances in smoked cannabis also trigger/enhance apoptosis. That’s the process that causes cells with mutations or other damage to stop reproducing and die. We *think* that there are better outcomes with pot, and fewer instances of problems because apoptosis triggers cause damaged cells to die rather than hanging around and reproducing, and accumulating more damage until they hit a malignant mutation.
Short answer : in absolute terms, smoking weed creates more tar and other nasty compounds than tobacco.
However, you normally smoke a **lot** less weed than your do tobacco.
Second, substances in smoked cannabis also trigger/enhance apoptosis. That’s the process that causes cells with mutations or other damage to stop reproducing and die. We *think* that there are better outcomes with pot, and fewer instances of problems because apoptosis triggers cause damaged cells to die rather than hanging around and reproducing, and accumulating more damage until they hit a malignant mutation.
A small note on vaping vs smoking (anything).
For people who live in the EU (or are still affected by EU laws *cough* UK) vaping is safer than both. That’s not to say that vaping is *safe*, just *safer*. The reason I specify the EU is because the components of e-liquid are tightly regulated so that they contain exactly one toxic chemical – nicotine. Anything else should be deemed safe for inhalation. I’m aware that in the US you don’t necessary know what else is being thrown into the juice.
The long term effects of vaping are not known but we know there are dangers associated with nicotine, such as reduced fertility and – if used during pregnancy- a higher risk to the child. In any case, vaping is pretty objectively a *good* thing for *ex-smokers* who have had difficulty quitting in other ways – it’s just another version of NRT. But it’s only good in the sense that it is much, much less harmful than breathing in smoke of any kind. It can only be a bad thing for non smokers who take up vaping though.
A small note on vaping vs smoking (anything).
For people who live in the EU (or are still affected by EU laws *cough* UK) vaping is safer than both. That’s not to say that vaping is *safe*, just *safer*. The reason I specify the EU is because the components of e-liquid are tightly regulated so that they contain exactly one toxic chemical – nicotine. Anything else should be deemed safe for inhalation. I’m aware that in the US you don’t necessary know what else is being thrown into the juice.
The long term effects of vaping are not known but we know there are dangers associated with nicotine, such as reduced fertility and – if used during pregnancy- a higher risk to the child. In any case, vaping is pretty objectively a *good* thing for *ex-smokers* who have had difficulty quitting in other ways – it’s just another version of NRT. But it’s only good in the sense that it is much, much less harmful than breathing in smoke of any kind. It can only be a bad thing for non smokers who take up vaping though.
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