Is Heat-Not-Burn Technology the Future of Cannabis?



As early as the late 1980s, tobacco companies explored alternatives to the traditional combustion methods of tobacco consumption. Before even the first e-cigarette was developed or the first bottle of vape juice synthesized, Big Tobacco endeavored to develop heat-not-burn technology.To get more news about IQOS, you can visit hitaste.net official website.

The idea behind the technology is this: Heating tobacco at a lower temperature than traditional flammable combustion (i.e., smoking) produces less smoke and fewer harmful carcinogens, presumably leading to fewer health risks for smokers.

Historically, cigarette consumers haven’t given heat-not-burn products the warmest reception. Early prototypes like R. J. Reynolds’ Premier went up in smoke due to poor reviews during market tests and complications with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. However, the early prototype does not compare to the latest innovations within the space. Premier was difficult to use and tasted horrible. Critics compared the design’s aesthetics to a crack pipe.

Now, with conventional cigarette smoking on the decline and vaping receiving a somewhat cooler response due to vaping-related lung illnesses and the coronavirus pandemic, heat-not-burn technology looks more promising than all other smokeables and inhalables. Tobacco giant Philip Morris, in particular, has begun championing new heat-not-burn products as the company envisions a future in which traditional cigarettes are obsolete. As a result, the global heat-not-burn market has grown at a rapid pace and is expected to see further exponential growth over the next seven years. After Phillip Morris introduced its product in 2014, 8.8 million of 12 million users claimed to have switched from cigarettes to the smoking alternative.

While heat-not-burn technology originally may have been developed as a pivot for the tobacco industry, it could become the next big thing in cannabis. Heat-not-burn can provide discreet, smokeless, metered dosing, which is sought-after by cannabis consumers.Heat-not-burn tobacco is by no means a completely risk-free alternative to smoking. However, the FDA has deemed Philip Morris’s heat-not-burn product a modified-risk tobacco product, making it the second ever to receive such status. The FDA made its decision based upon research suggesting heat-not-burn products can significantly reduce the amount of carcinogens absorbed by users. Burning any plant matter releases carcinogens, but by circumventing the combustion process many of the carcinogens can be avoided. Using computer models, researchers determined that people who use heat-not-burn products may be as much as ten times less likely to develop cancer than people who smoke conventional cigarettes.