Cannabis User Perceptions: General and Oral Health Benefits and Harms of Vaping <i>Versus</i> Smoking

With increasing popularity of vaping, the study assessed the perceptions of adults who used cannabis/marijuana about general and oral health benefits and harms of vaping compared to smoking cannabis. An online cross-sectional survey was conducted with a convenience sample of adults (<i>n</i> = 324) who had used cannabis in the past month recruited <i>via</i> Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk). Survey items included perceptions of general and oral health benefits and harms of vaping or smoking cannabis/marijuana. Descriptive, correlation, and non-parametric analysis were used. The survey completion rate was 93.2% (<i>n</i> = 302). The most important health benefit reported for vaping cannabis/marijuana was <i>better pain management</i> (72.5%). The most important harm identified for both smoking and vaping cannabis was it being <i>habit forming</i>. Researching the health benefits and harms of cannabis was associated with being more likely to report a higher risk for cardiovascular disease (Phi effect size = 0.141) and cavities (tooth decay; Phi effect size = 0.15). Women preferred vaping to improve mood (<i>p</i> = 0.016) and younger age was associated with preference for vaping to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression (<i>p</i> = 0.03). The findings expanded knowledge on perceptions of benefit and harm to general health with new information related to oral health. There were few significant differences in perceptions of benefits and harm from vaping as compared to smoking cannabis. However, findings highlight the importance of an interprofessional collaboration to provide evidence-based information about the potential general and oral health impact of smoking or vaping cannabis.