Tobacco smoking has for a long time been known to cause a whole host of diseases, including many types of cancer.
Thanks to conclusive scientific studies and subsequent public health warnings, the number of tobacco smokers continues to drop every year. However, quitting isn’t easy thanks to nicotine’s strong addictive qualities. This means many ex-smokers turn to other sources of nicotine (like patches and gum) in order to satisfy their cravings.
A growing number, however, have found an even more effective substitute for nicotine and tobacco. CBD-containing products – in particular, smokable hemp flower – are proving to offer a seemingly much healthier alternative for weaning off cigarettes.
The Stats
In fact, Google Trends reveals that the term ‘hemp’ was searched more than both tobacco and nicotine. Additionally, according to a Brightfield Group survey of more than 5,000 CBD users in the U.S.:
- 24% have used CBD to help quit smoking.
- Quitters are often replacing cigarettes
with either smokable hemp or vaping CBD. - 41% of quitters have entirely replaced
tobacco with CBD-rich hemp.
Healthy hemp
While tobacco causes all manner of health problems, CBD has been found to be very therapeutically beneficial. It also doesn’t have any strong psychoactive effects like THC, the other most common cannabinoid found in cannabis.
It has also been found that CBD may offer a unique pathway to overcoming addiction to substances such as nicotine. One study found that CBD alters the attention bias of the brain, making addictive cues less triggering. And this backs up previous research that found CBD use reduces cigarette consumption.
In fact, this very interesting study that when subjects were given an inhaler with CBD to puff on when they noticed cravings for a cigarette, significantly reduced the number of cigarettes they smoked by 40%. And these people weren’t even trying to cut down.
Hemp cigarettes and Pre rolls
The CBD product with the most potential to aid tobacco-quitters is hemp flower pre rolls (or hemp). As you may have guested, hemp flower-filled cigarettes are smoked and, therefore, offer a direct tobacco cigarette substitute
And although smoking is undoubtedly not the healthiest consumption method, inhaling cannabis smoke is believed to be much safer than cigarette smoke.
Demand
While the use of tobacco is declining, the CBD market has only just started to take off. It’s predicted that CBD sales in the U.S. will surpass $20 billion by 2024. The smokable hemp market may only currently represent approximately 2% of the overall CBD market, but a 250% growth from 2017 to 2018 suggests that dried and smokable hemp flower is one of the fastest-growing segments in the entire CBD market.
And then consider recent concerns around vaping due to well-publicized deaths and injuries, and it’s very likely that hemp cigarettes and pre-rolls will receive a further boost in demand as people look for healthier options.
Summary
Smoking cannabis does not always mean getting high. Cigarettes made from hemp are non-psychoactive, cause no long-term health problems, and even benefit those suffering with addiction.
All these factors will see the popularity of hemp flower cigarettes and pre-rolls increase dramatically over the coming years. This is bad news for tobacco producers but great news for people’s health.