How to Smoke CBD Flower and CBD in Bud Form

Are you smoking CBD buds all wrong? Here’s a finer way to smoke hemp flower for the full benefits. The passing of the Farm Bill, which allows the cultivation and production of the hemp plant, has created more hype around CBD strains as a natural treatment than ever before. Safely smoking CBD flower in bud form is an art. You can achieve an entourage effect by 'smoking flower' with smokable marijuana. The benefits of smoking high CBD hemp has led to increased industrial hemp production. And with the debate over the legality of having and smoking CBD bud in its whole-plant, full-spectrum form currently heating up, increased attention has turned to the various ways to smoke CBD hemp flowers and the benefits and risks of each.

To provide some insight into the different ways to smoke high-quality CBD hemp derived products and the impact on health and treatment outlook, I turned to the medical community. But what I found was completely unexpected. Pretty much everyone I’ve spoken to about these findings has been using vaped CBD flower or CBD rich flower incorrectly since day 1. And this goes for smoking CBD buds and CBD joint pre-rolls, and for vaping whole-plant CBD flower and CBD oil.

So what does the medical community have to say about the best way to it?

But First...Can You Smoke Hemp CBD? Is That a Thing?

Before evaluating the right and wrong way to smoke dry leaf, whole-plant CBD flower on our health, it’s important to have a clear picture of the differences between hemp and marijuana in terms of chemical makeup and application. When people refer to 'herb', green, weed, flower, grass, bud, pot, tree, nug, reefer, and hundreds of other smokable marijuana nicknames, they’re referring to flower from the marijuana or cannabis plant.

The various species of the Cannabis flowering plant, either Indica or Sativa strains, used for medical and recreational marijuana use have 120+ active ingredients that function similarly to the way our body’s natural chemicals are designed to work. In addition to the non-psychoactive cannabidiol (CBD) itself, the other main component in whole-plant CBD flower is THC, the popular psychoactive cannabinoid. The psychoactive effects of CBD cannabinoids and terpenes are minimal. Various other beneficial cannabinoids, nutritious vitamins, minerals, immunity-boosting antioxidants, essential Omega 3 fatty acids, terpenes, and flavonoids are also in full-spectrum CBD flower.

What about the hemp plant? Are there therapeutic benefits of smoking hemp flower? The hemp plant is a variety of the Cannabis sativa plant species. It has a low amount of THC with an insignificant level of mind-altering. The THC content is < 0.3%, with a high amount of CBD. Similar to marijuana, hemp-derived cannabinoids, and our inherent endocannabinoids similarly interact with our bodies. But although a hemp drug test shows a high level of cannabidiol, smoking hemp isn’t a thing. Rather, the hemp plant is used for industrial applications and in body care products.

If you were trying to use CBD bud from the hemp plant, you’d get the benefits of cannabidiol, but you wouldn’t get “high.” You’d probably get dizzy instead and maybe even a slight headache. You’d also just be putting unnecessary pressure on your lungs, just like if you smoked any random plant or flower.

Why Toke on CBD Buds?

While all forms of smoking full-spectrum CBD bud have their unique pros and cons, they all play a direct hand in modulating our body’s endocannabinoid system (ECS). CBD functions like our inherent endocannabinoid neurotransmitters by binding with cannabinoid receptor proteins in our ECS.

So when you use CBD oil or whole-plant CBD flower, the activated CBD cannabinoid improves the regulation of our ECS and helps our body reach homeostasis or the internal state of being balanced and stable. Other phytocannabinoids, or naturally-occurring cannabinoids, in smokable marijuana also facilitate our ECS, but activated CBD is the most noteworthy chemical messenger.

People also like to use CBD flower for some of the reasons why people like to smoke cigarettes. But smoking it doesn’t come with the notorious health risks of tobacco. Smoking joints wrapped with hemp paper instead of cigarette paper, for example, helps people calm down, enjoy a moment of peace and serenity outside, and ultimately relax without inhaling cigarette toxins.

Why Vaping Smokable Marijuana is Richer in Nutrients & Fuller in Flavor

When you vape CBD tinctures, you activate and consume the full scope of therapeutic elements in cannabis without burning the nutrients or inhaling ash in weed smoke. So the vapor or mist produced from vaping full-range CBD is rich in nutrients and full in flavor.

When vaping whole-plant CBD nugs, you grind the bud and pack it into a chamber that works like an oven. With vaping, hot air is pushed through the chamber and transitions the medication from its trichome (or “hairy” smokable marijuana form) into a clean vapor that you inhale.

How SHOULD you & How Should you NOT Vape or Smoke It?

Did you know that it’s a waste to take more vitamin supplements than recommended? When you consume more than your body can systematically handle during a given time frame, you just pee them out. Habituation (i.e., getting used to something) is another reason why folks who consistently take more vitamins than needed don’t usually find them helpful when they’re sick and need the immunity boost. Something similar happens when you incorrectly inhale CBD. There’s a right way to smoke it and a wrong way.

Contrary to common belief, holding in smoke from whole-plant CBD buds longer than necessary doesn’t maximize the benefits or help to conserve the amount you have in the long run. The opposite is true actually. Consuming more smoke than the threshold (aka the first bronchial split) of what the lungs can handle and holding it in longer than necessary leads to wasted medicine and unnecessary strain on the lungs. Instead, it’s best to inhale slowly but deeply to fill the lungs with just the right amount of medicine, along with about a third of good ole’, life-sustaining fresh air. Taking in fresh oxygen when you inhale it enhances the health benefits of activated cannabinoids.

It’s also best to pause between hits when you hit it. One or two hits of a whole-plant CBD joint or any full-spectrum smokable marijuana may do the trick. So waiting a few minutes between hits reduces any health risks associated with cannabidiol inhalation, helps to conserve the longevity of CBD flower, and ensures you get the most out of activated whole-plant CBD.

Impact of Smoking CBD without a Vape

Contrary to common belief, there’s no link found between using CBD joints or smokable marijuana of any kind and the development or of lung cancer OR chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) symptoms (e.g., wheezing, lack of breath, etc.). CBD and other cannabis ingredients may help kill cancer-causing cells. And the vast majority of COPD cases are linked to tobacco use.

But there’s a significant need for research investigating how methods to consume CBD flower may impact the worsening of existing COPD symptoms. In particular, there’s a high demand for longitudinal studies exploring the health progression of patients with and without COPD who consistently smoke CBD BUT who don’t use a vaporizer OR tobacco of any kind. Such research would greatly improve our understanding of how active cannabinoids impact our health and whether it’s safe to smoke CBD.

Different ways to hit CBD in whole-plant form may also be more cost-effective than other CBD consumption methods, pharmaceutical drugs, and over-the-counter medications. Furthermore, a study conducted by researchers from Harvard University, which was published just this week in the journal Human Reproduction, indicates that one of the side effects of 'smoking flower' is linked to a higher sperm count. Smoking tobacco, on the other hand, is widely known to have the opposite effect on sperm production.

It’s All in the Process: Best Way to Vape or Smoke CBD

The legalization of hemp has set the stage for the generation, distribution, and continued improvement of a variety of new CBD products. With all the craze surrounding CBD as an anti-inflammatory, or a natural remedy for a range of complaints and illnesses, more and more people are curious about the methods to smoke CBD and the treatment effectiveness of each. But as we’ve seen, there’s a right way to smoke it... and a wrong way, no matter if you’re vaping or 'smoking flowers'.

If you want to vape or smoke CBD from whole-plant marijuana buds, there’s no need to go blue in the face trying to hold in the smoke. If you want to save your CBD flower for smoking or vaping, inhaling just the right amount of smoke along with some fresh oxygen is key to maximizing your medicine and minimizing any negative health impacts.

Learn more about the effects of THC, the benefits of smoking CBD, and whether it’s safe to smoke THC and CBD. Experience the benefits of cannabinoids for your health. Browse our article What are Side Effects of Smoking Weed for Medical Purposes? Or...interested in how the legalization of whole-plant CBD flower and the ability to smoke CBD will alter your experience? Check out our article, Marijuana Flower, and the Entourage Effect. Is Florida Healthier? Click for tips on How to Take Marijuana Edibles. KindHealth will certify patients under Florida's amendment for medical marijuana.