Kratom is gaining increasing exposure and popularity. It’s native to Southeast Asia and the people there used to chew kratom leaves while working in the fields.
Nowadays, the most popular way of taking kratom is making kratom tea. Others prefer Toss & Wash or kratom capsules. However, you can also make kratom soap, baths, and kratom salve. (Yes, that’s right, and we’ll make sure to cover those in the future, too.)
Yet, more and more people are wondering whether one can smoke kratom.
Well, the short answer is that you technically can smoke kratom. However, whether you should do it or not is a completely different matter.
Let’s look into it and find out whether smoking kratom is a good alternative for you to consider.
Advantages of Smoking Kratom
1. You May Experience Kratom Effects Sooner
When you ingest kratom, your body needs to break it down and absorb it into your bloodstream. Then, it can reach your brain and bind with the receptors in it. This is when you will start experiencing kratom effects.
When smoking, the chemicals bypass your digestive system. They are absorbed into your blood along with oxygen through the lungs. As a result, they’ll be able to reach your brain and take effect much sooner.
If by intaking kratom it takes a minimum of 10-15 minutes to start expiring kratom effects, then by smoking this time can be reduced to about 10 seconds. The peak of kratom effects may also occur faster. But that would also mean that kratom duration and half-life is shorter as well.
2. Smoking Kratom May Help You Quit Smoking Other Substances
If you are trying to quit cigarettes doing so at once may cause withdrawal symptoms. However, substituting that with kratom could keep withdrawal symptoms at bay. Thus, you may have an easier time quitting in general.
The Disadvantages of Smoking Kratom
1. Not as Effective
While smoking kratom, you will be burning it. So, some amount of kratom will be lost in the process. There isn’t much scientific proof to provide solid data on the matter. Yet, some sources suggest that you need about 10 times the amount of kratom to experience the same effects that you would after ingesting it.
So if your regular dose of kratom is 4 grams, you would need to smoke 40 grams to experience the same effects.
2. Not Cost-Efficient
If you need a lot more kratom to feel the same effects, it means that you’ll go through your kratom reserves much faster, too. That, in turn, means much more money that you’d need to spend.
3. High Temperature Can Destroy Kratom Alkaloids
We’ve discussed before that heat can bring out the alkaloids in kratom. But too much heat can destroy them. This is why, when preparing kratom tea, you should be simmering it instead of boiling.
When smoking, the temperature of the cigarette reaches up to 900°C or 1652°F. That is nine times higher than the temperature of boiling water. Therefore, it can negatively affect the alkaloids in kratom.
Users who have tried smoking kratom have indeed reported that the effects they experience are either very weak or nonexistent. Some even admit that they may be placebo.
4. Smoking Can Cause Different Health Issues
Smoking in itself isn’t beneficial for one’s health. Quite the contrary. It can cause a variety of different health issues such as:
- higher risk of developing blood clots,
- higher blood pressure and heart rate which makes the heart work faster,
- narrowing the blood vessels which results in less oxygen in the blood,
- higher risk of stroke and heart attack,
- higher risk of developing stomach, lung, cervical, and other types of cancer,
- reduced fertility in both males and females,
- weakened immune system,
- faster aging,
- weaker bones,
- more frequent respiratory problems and illnesses,
- and more.
So, if you are trying to reduce pain and improve your wellbeing by taking kratom, the side effects of smoking may actually defeat the purpose.
Can You Vape Kratom?
Vaping has become a new trend in recent years. Because it does not require combustion, vaping is considered less harmful than smoking. However, recent studies indicate that vaping may not be as safe as previously thought.
In order to vape kratom, you need an extract – kratom vape juice. Some online sellers offer it, but it is a lot less common than kratom powder or capsules.
Keep in mind that kratom extracts are the most potent form of kratom available. This makes it easy to intake a much higher dose than necessary. Measuring the right dose can also be a challenge. In addition, kratom extracts are rather expensive and harder to find.
Final Verdict
All in all, smoking kratom has more disadvantages than it has advantages. And even the existing advantages are rather inconclusive.
Smoking kratom can be significantly harmful to one’s health. According to existing data, it can also be about 10 times less effective than ingesting it and it is also a lot more expensive.
Vaping kratom could be less damaging to one’s health, but, according to users, the effects are not nearly as strong. Moreover, vaping is a novelty. Therefore, there are no studies to verify if vaping kratom or other herbals is safe or whether it can have beneficial effects on one’s health.
Because of the reasons above, we would advise you to stick to the known and proven ways of taking kratom. Even if you keep seeing kratom vape juice and kratom for smoking either online and in smoke shops.
Keep in mind that not all vendors are interested in what’s best for the users. This along with the lack of credible studies and information of kratom can make it into an easy marketing gimmick.
Have you ever tried smoking kratom? Did you experience the desired effects? How strong were they? How about vaping kratom? Would you recommend it?
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