It’s no secret that inhaling anything other than air isn’t the best thing for you. Heck, we don’t know if air is even good for us anymore! Although there have been many studies conducted about the impact of tobacco smoking on the lungs, not much is known about herbal inhalation. Until those studies become more prevalent, there are a lot of unknowns about how smoking can impact your lungs over time!
The industry has had to circumvent the available research and trust their smoking experiences when it comes to creating products that will decrease the impact of smoke inhalation on their community. With the knowledge we have accessible to us, we can make smarter decisions as to how we consume our herb and which products will aid in the prevention of irritation and other complications. Here are a few different tips and habits that will help you become a more conscientious stoner!
Bleached versus Unbleached Rolling Papers… What’s the difference?
Who doesn’t love a slow-burning jay? Usually this is a desirable quality when it comes to picking out a pack of papers, but what you may not know is that most papers that advertise as being slow-burning are also bleached. These papers are usually thicker and appear to be bright white in color, and when burned, release the chemicals that were used to bleach the papers (such as chlorine and calcium carbonate).
Your herbs alone contain tar, which isn’t great for your lungs to begin with, and now couple that with bleached papers and you’re inhaling all sorts of chemicals! It’s best to stick with rolling papers that are unbleached and made out of hemp. Although the papers themselves may burn faster than your liking, they will be way less harmful on your lungs. You can discover new techniques to rolling that will make your jay last a lot longer without compromising your health!
Let’s be blunt…
Cigarillos are made of tobacco! Every cigarillo wrapper has some sort of warning on it that tells you exactly why you should NOT be smoking it! It has addictive qualities, and who knows what other chemicals tobacco companies put into rillos. People usually like blunts because the nicotine can negate some of the effects of their herb, but it’s not exactly the healthiest practice.
If you’re not ready to give up cigarillos just yet, a great alternative for you could be hemp blunt wraps! These are gutless wraps that are nicotine and tobacco free that have a similar texture and burn to cigarillos. They can usually fit more herb in them than cigarillos, and you don’t have to worry about splitting or gutting them. Plus, they come in a variety of flavors and brands so you can mix it up if you get bored. Of course, you’re still inhaling smoke from something other than your herb, but it’s still safer than cigarillos.
Glass is a stoner’s best friend
Of course, rolling one up and sharing with the buds is fun, but glass is the way to go! When you use a glass pipe or bong, you’re not burning or inhaling any extra chemicals. This ensures that you’re experiencing your herb in the most natural, holistic way possible with no adulterants. You get bonus points if you have a larger water pipe or bong that also filters out a lot of the tar and traps it in the surface area of the bong before making its way into your lungs!
Speaking of filtering…
Let’s talk about the Moose Labs MouthPeace! This ingenious filter is designed to fit on virtually anything you’re puffing on. Whether it’s a jay, a water pipe, or a hand pipe, the Mouthpeace has you covered. They have replaceable filters that block most of the harmful ash, tar and debris from your smoke from entering your lungs. Once they gunk up, you’ll definitely see why you’ll need to use it during every sesh!
Have you heard the buzz?
Lighters are a great source of flame, but they are also powered by butane: a gas that isn’t such a great thing to inhale. When you light your jay or your bowl, not only are you inhaling the good stuff, you’re also inhaling butane. Use Bee Line hemp wick as a middle man for lighting your herb! This hemp-based string is coated with beeswax and provides you with a good, clean flame to light up with. You can definitely taste the difference between a bowl lit straight from a lighter versus one that has been lit with hemp wick.
Convection over combustion
Anything that has been lit on fire gives off smoke, and smoke can irritate the lungs of the user who is inhaling it. If you find that your lungs need a break from your conventional smoking methods, it might be time to try out a vaporizer! Vaporizers use a convection heating source, kind of like an oven, to vaporize all of the good elements of your flower and prevent irritants from making their way into your lungs. This also allows you to taste all of the terpenes in your product and makes for a more flavorful experience! For added smoothness, you can attach a vaporizer to a water pipe so that the vapor can be cooled through water percolation.
Happy lungs = a happy stoner!
If you haven’t been enjoying your seshes like you used to, it might be time to switch up your routine a little bit. Try some of the tips in this blog and let us know which ones are your favorites! We can’t entirely eliminate the possibility of lung complications, but we can make more conscious decisions as to how to responsibly consume.