What is a marijuana vape cart, or cartridge?

Let’s face it — smoking is out. Even the New York Times’ Farhad Manjoo has gotten hip to it.

Many aficionados are moving beyond raw, unprocessed cannabis flower buds and to manufactured products. And the fastest growing category?

The marijuana vape cart — a technical term for a pre-filled container of cannabis oil used with a marijuana e-cigarette. So how does it work, and is it right for you?

What is a marijuana vape cart?

Vape carts or cartridges are small attachments to a marijuana e-cigarette or vape pen. They are sold pre-filled with cannabis concentrates which are rich in cannabis’ medicinal active ingredients. Most vape carts are high in THC (the mood-lifting ingredient in cannabis), but some contain cannabidiol (CBD, a non-psychoactive cannabinoid), or terpenes (the chemicals that give cannabis it’s flavorful tastes and aromas).

How do marijuana vape carts work?

Marijuana vape carts fit together with a marijuana e-cigarette base. As with tobacco e-cigarettes, the battery (usually activated by the push of a button) powers an atomizer, which heats the cannabis oil at low temperatures and turns it into a cool, inhalable mist. The THC enters the blood via the lungs and then enters the brain where it causes its most powerful effects.

Why are people using marijuana vape carts? Who do they benefit?

Vape carts are discrete, easy to use and work super-fast. It’s hard to overdo it with a vape cart, and some even come in titrated doses. There is no smoke, since the oil is heated only enough to vaporize it. And there is relatively little odor.

These factors make them popular with people who can’t or don’t want to smoke.

Marijuana vape carts can potentially help manage issues such as pain, muscle spasms, inflammation and mood. Last year the National Academies of Sciences reported that there is evidence that THC can effectively reduce symptoms such as pain, inflammation, spasticity and anxiety.