World No Tobacco Day on May 31, 2024

Der klassische Joint ist die im Freizeitbereich gängigste Art, Cannabis zu konsumieren. Aber was ist, wenn man gar nicht raucht? Anlässlich des Weltnichtrauchertages der Weltgesundheitsorganisation (WHO) am 31. Mai 2024 klärt Grünhorn über Alternativen zum traditionellen Rauchen von Cannabis auf.

In Germany, one in four adults regularly smokes cigarettes¹. Although the numbers have been declining for several years, they remain in the tens of millions. Tobacco smoke contains many toxic and carcinogenic substances, damaging almost every organ in the body and being a major cause of heart disease, strokes, other health problems, and premature death². The effect of a joint with tobacco on the lungs can be up to five times that of a cigarette due to deeper inhalation and size³ . Therefore, it is crucial to learn about alternative consumption methods for the recently legalized cannabis. For non-smokers like Michael L. from Munich, who relies on cannabis therapy, this is extremely important: "I combine flowers that I vaporize and cannabis extracts. Unlike inhaling dried flowers, these act like extended-release medications and help me get through the night better as a pain patient."

World No Tobacco Day Health Protection in Focus

This year's World No Tobacco Day is themed "Protecting Children from Tobacco Industry Influence."Youth and health protection are also top priorities for Grünhorn: "As Karl Lauterbach emphasized during the legalization debate, it is about drying up the black market and protecting young people," says Stefan Fritsch, CEO and founder of the Grünhorn Group. Medical cannabis is produced under controlled conditions. The purity of the products ensures that users know exactly what they are consuming without the risk of contamination. "Medical cannabis adheres to strict quality standards and limits, with each batch being tested. Contaminants like hairspray, lead, or mold, common in black market cannabis, are thus excluded."

According to Dr. rer. nat. Nadine Herwig, head of the Grünhorn Academy, there are modern methods that are significantly less harmful to consumers' health than smoking. While lung consumption allows for quick THC absorption, beneficial for pain patients, it also risks destroying cannabinoids and terpenes during combustion and introducing toxic substances into the lungs. "Gentler and simpler alternatives are vaporizing, extracts, and capsules," says Dr. Herwig. Preparing tea or butter from decarboxylated cannabis flowers to make edibles is also possible. So-called "edibles" such as THC-infused gummies, are not yet legal in Germany.

Cannabis Extracts & Capsules

Extracts, capsules, and pump sprays are made from controlled medical cannabis flowers under pharmaceutical conditions, such as ethanol extraction in glass flasks. According to pharmaceutical recommendations for cannabis therapy, extracts are preferred as they do not need to be inhaled through the lungs and are currently considered completely harmless to healthy individuals. For extracts taken dropwise, no tools like fine scales or vaporizers are needed. Dosing attachments or syringes with milliliter markings make extracts easy to dose. Public consumption is discreet without vapor. Extracts provide a slower onset of active ingredients after liver metabolism. Thus, THC does not take effect as suddenly but lasts longer (about 5 hours), which can be advantageous for treating chronic conditions. Personalized therapy is possible by selecting suitable extracts with specific CBD/THC content and terpenes. A disadvantage is the delayed onset of action, taking about 20 to 40 minutes. The cost is higher compared to flowers, although modern extraction methods will lead to more affordable extracts in the future. Innovative methods allow for more precise control over the extraction process, resulting in a higher yield of cannabinoids and terpenes. For a long time, this was not possible, and extracts had little or no terpene content.

Vaporizing

To vaporize dried cannabis flowers with vaporizers, grind them with a "grinder," a herb mill. Then, fill a chamber in the device with the ground flower parts without adding tobacco and heat them controlled by the temperature regulator. Vaporizing at the ideal temperature of 200 degrees Celsius does not produce harmful combustion products released during traditional smoking. This reduces the risk of respiratory diseases and lung cancer. Some health insurers cover the cost of the two vaporizer models "Volcano Digit" and "Mighty Medic" from Storz and Bickel in cannabis therapy, provided the therapy with cannabis flowers has been approved. The desired components (terpenes and cannabinoids) are better preserved than when smoking. Vaporizers use cannabis more efficiently as they offer the possibility to vaporize at different temperatures to maximize active ingredient and terpene extraction. A drawback is that vaporizing has a shorter duration of effect compared to extracts (about 2 hours).

Sources::

^{1 https://de.statista.com/themen/150/rauchen/#topicOverview
2  https://de.statista.com/themen/150/rauchen/#topicOverview
3  https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070731085550.htm}