What’s In Your Vape?
If you’ve ever seen someone walking around with a pen-shaped mouthpiece lifted to his or her face, trailing behind a cloud of sweet-smelling smoke, you’ve already witnessed vaping.
E-cigarettes – or vaporizers – were catapulted into the mainstream as a way for people to wean off traditional cigarettes. Even the CDC has acknowledged these small aerosol-producing machines can benefit adult smokers as long as vaping is used as a complete substitute for smoking or other tobacco use.
The popularity of vaping has also caught on in the cannabis community, providing people a new way to use this still-debated drug.
We surveyed over 1,000 people about how many currently use marijuana, how many smoke versus vape, and where people are most comfortable toting their e-cigarette. Read on to find out what smokers are up to and what non-users have to say in the age of vaping.
Marijuana by the Numbers
As the demand for vaporizers increases, so has the number of substances people use to vape. Even cannabis has quickly found a platform in the vaping world, as more and more people choose to swap their joints for juice.
Interestingly, though, while over half of respondents said they did not smoke or vape marijuana regularly, over a quarter of respondents reported doing both. Those who used marijuana with a vaporizer, however, were in the minority (8 percent). Vapers in general are most likely vaporizing nicotine or tobacco, according to 81% of respondents who vape. Around a third of vapers have marijuana in their devices, while CBD oil is the next popular substance.
Smoking Differences
It turns out that the most popular place for people to smoke or vape marijuana was in the privacy of their car. However, it may not be the smartest decision to do so. In California, despite recreational marijuana having been legalized, you can still receive a ticket for driving with an open container, similar to alcohol-related open container laws.
Public parks were the second-most popular place for both smoking and vaping marijuana, with 52 percent of smokers and 69 percent of vapers doing so. On the street, outside of a bar, and in an outdoor smoking area followed this, although people who vaped marijuana were more likely to do so outside of a bar than on the street.
Some speculate individuals vaping marijuana may be less likely to be caught using the drug in public due to the vaporizer’s ability to dampen the scent of “combusted plant matter.”
Vape Positive?
Marijuana users were much more comfortable than non-users with others vaping the drug in their vicinity – even if they didn’t notice it. Ninety-four percent of cannabis users didn’t mind the idea, while 76 percent of people who didn’t use marijuana were OK with it.
However, just as people may have concerns about second hand nicotine smoke, it’s also important to be mindful of marijuana smoke and an individual’s concerns about unwanted exposure – just under 25 percent of non-users said it would matter if someone vaped marijuana around them even if they didn’t notice.
Vaping Locations
Respondents’ habits and opinions were fairly congruent when comparing the locations where people vaped marijuana and where others deemed it unacceptable to do so.
No more than 18 percent of people each witnessed someone vaping the drug in places like restaurants, work bathrooms, or public transportation. These same locations gleaned high disapproval ratings as well: Between 84 and 88 percent of respondents expressed disapproval depending on the specific place.
Regardless of opinion, however, using marijuana in public is still illegal in places like Los Angeles, even though recreational use of the drug has been legalized. The law in Nevada also prohibits the public smoking of recreational marijuana.
Frequency of a Habit
From our survey, we discovered people who both smoked and vaped marijuana did so 4.9 times a week on average. However, people who strictly smoked marijuana indulged a little more often than people who strictly vaped marijuana – 4.3 times compared to 3.7 times a week, respectively.
Besides their weekly consumption, how many times a day did our respondents use marijuana? It turns out that, on average, people who strictly vaped marijuana only did so 1.6 times a day, compared to 2.3 times for marijuana smokers and 3.1 times for people who both smoked and vaped marijuana. According to one recent study, the number of people currently smoking marijuana is higher than in years past, with approximately 8.4 million people doing so on a daily basis.
When smoking every day turns from calming to compulsive, there is hope for getting yourself through a successful detox.
Dating a User
Respondents who used marijuana themselves were more likely to be open to dating other users than people who vaped or smoked tobacco – including tobacco mixed with marijuana. Non-users, however, were less enthusiastic about dating a marijuana user, although men were less averse to this than women.
The most unanimous answer came from male cannabis users, 90 percent of whom were open to dating someone who smoked marijuana. In comparison, only 82 percent would date someone who vaped marijuana, and less than 50 percent would pair off with a person who vaped or smoked tobacco.
On the whole, respondents were not overly enthusiastic about cigarette smokers or vapers as partners. Recent reports show cigarette use is on the decline among teen populations, indicating the general opinion of smoking may indeed be changing beyond this survey as well.
Vaping Concerns
People’s views on marijuana are changing. However, some respondents preferred to not be in the vicinity of marijuana at all, and others (specifically non-users) were much more likely to date other non-users.
Regardless of how marijuana use frequency is moderated, it is still very possible for a user’s relationship with the drug to go sour. If you begin to rely on any drug to provide happiness and comfort, it may be time to seek treatment. Detox.net is your online resource for both alcohol and drug addiction. We can help you find a treatment center, provide helpful information and articles, and tackle elaborate topics such as finding coverage for your treatment. It’s time to make a change for the better, so head to Detox.net today.
Methodology
We surveyed 1,013 people for this survey, in which 54 percent were men and 46 percent were women. The ages ranged between 18 and 78, with a mean age of 35 and standard deviation of 11 years. Data were not weighted, and no statistical testing was performed. This is an exploratory analysis of our perceptions of marijuana vaping and marijuana use.
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