Dr Andrew Huberman Smoking, vaping and cannabis have all come under the microscope as two doctors compared the risks — and their verdict offers a clear hierarchy for nicotine users. Dr Peter Attia and Dr Andrew Huberman discussed cigarettes, vapes, nicotine gum, cannabis and edibles, with inhaling smoke or vape products emerging as the major concern. Speaking on the Huberman Lab podcast, Dr Attia set out his ranking from least to most harmful for nicotine users. He placed nicotine gum and lozenges first, followed by vaping and then smoking cigarettes. Vaping was described as “the lesser of two evils” compared with cigarettes. But Dr Attia stressed that avoiding both would be preferable, saying there were better ways to obtain nicotine, including lozenges and gum. The message was blunt: if nicotine is what someone wants, they do not necessarily need to put smoke or vape aerosol into their lungs. Nicotine replacement products offer an alternative without inhaling those substances. Cannabis brought a more complicated comparison. Dr Attia warned there was “no reason to believe that smoking cannabis is somehow better than smoking cigarettes”. He suggested that, based on the harm caused by smoke itself, one cannabis joint could be roughly comparable to one cigarette. But he immediately drew an important distinction: cannabis users generally inhale far less smoke because they may smoke a joint occasionally, while a regular cigarette smoker could consume 20 or more cigarettes every day. As Dr Attia put it, the main argument in favour of smoking cannabis is that “the dose seems to be significantly lower”. That difference in exposure does not mean smoking cannabis is harmless. Dr Huberman also highlighted risks specific to cannabis. While certain forms have “some medical applications”, particularly pure CBD, he said high-THC cannabis has been linked to an increased risk of psychosis, particularly among young men. The doctors also warned against assuming that something less harmful than another option is therefore safe. Vaping may generally be considered less harmful than cigarettes, but that does not mean it is good for the lungs. Huberman said he was particularly concerned about what people actually inhale when using vapes. He described the chemical constituents and inhaled substances as “loaded with carcinogens and a bunch of other stuff” and said that was what worried him most. Ultimately, the doctors found no healthy winner among smoking, vaping and inhaled cannabis. For nicotine users, their preference was for gum, lozenges and patches over vaping or smoking. For cannabis users, avoiding inhalation altogether and choosing edibles could reduce some of the risks associated with smoke. The central message remained simple: less exposure does not mean no risk. Doctor compares smoking, vaping and weed to show which is worse for you
