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Cannabis and tobacco

Mixing cannabis and tobacco: what to know

Disclaimer

The information provided is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice and should not replace advice from a qualified healthcare professional. If you're worried about something that happened, speak with a doctor or another health professional. Read our full disclaimer.

If you mix tobacco with cannabis, you’re taking in more than what you would with cannabis alone. You’re also getting nicotine, tobacco smoke, chemicals and the effects that come with them.

For some people, tobacco is only ever consumed as part of their cannabis consumption. For others, tobacco is already part of their life because they smoke cigarettes as well. Some people have smoked cigarettes and cannabis alongside each other for years, with tobacco becoming part of both relationships.

That difference matters.

Someone who only gets nicotine through their cannabis may have a very different relationship with tobacco from someone who smokes cigarettes throughout the day and also adds tobacco to their cannabis.

None of that means you have to want to stop either one. It can still be useful to understand what tobacco is adding, where your nicotine is coming from and how the two behaviours can become connected.

Why people mix cannabis and tobacco

Cannabis and tobacco are mixed in different ways for different reasons around the world. You might hear people call it a mix, mull, spin or spliff, depending on where you are and how it’s being consumed.

People do it for many different reasons. It might be how they first learned to consume cannabis, something everyone else around them does, a way of changing how a joint or cone burns, a preference for how it feels, or simply a habit that has become part of the ritual.

For some people, tobacco only really exists within their cannabis consumption.

For others, they already smoke cigarettes and tobacco naturally became part of how they consume cannabis too. In that situation, mixing cannabis and tobacco isn't necessarily what introduced nicotine into their life. It's another source of nicotine within an existing pattern of tobacco consumption.

Research generally describes co-use as consuming both cannabis and tobacco or nicotine, while co-administration refers more specifically to consuming them together in the same product, such as a spliff or cannabis mixed with tobacco in a joint. A person can do one, the other or both.

From a harm reduction perspective, understanding where tobacco fits into your cannabis consumption can make it easier to notice how much nicotine you're getting, what role tobacco is playing and whether the two habits have become connected.

What tobacco adds

Nicotine, found in tobacco, is a stimulant and can increase heart rate and blood pressure. It can also contribute to dizziness, nausea, sweating, headache or feeling shaky, particularly when someone gets more nicotine than they're used to.

That means that some of what feels like an especially strong cannabis experience may actually be coming from nicotine, or from the effects of both substances happening at the same time.

Additionally, It can also bring another dependence into the picture as nicotine is highly addictive. Regular nicotine exposure can lead to cravings, tolerance and withdrawal, whether that nicotine comes from cigarettes, tobacco mixed with cannabis or both of them.

For someone who already smokes cigarettes, nicotine dependence may already exist independently of cannabis. Mixing tobacco into cannabis can then become another part of that nicotine intake rather than the sole source of it.

Research into cannabis and tobacco co-use has found that the two commonly occur together and may be connected through shared smoking behaviours, overlapping withdrawal symptoms and consuming them together. The relationship is complicated though, and consuming one doesn't automatically mean someone will become dependent on the other.

What else is actually in tobacco?

Some substances are already present in the tobacco plant or are absorbed while it grows, including cadmium, lead and nitrates. Others form while tobacco is cured and processed, including tobacco specific nitrosamines, some of which are known carcinogens. Ingredients have also historically been added during manufacturing to change things like flavour, harshness, moisture and the way the product is experienced.

But a large number of the harmful chemicals associated with tobacco are actually created when it burns.

The Australian Government reports that tobacco smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals, almost 100 of which are known to be toxic and at least 70 of which are known to cause cancer. These include carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, acrolein, benzene, hydrogen cyanide, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, tobacco specific nitrosamines and substances including cadmium, lead and arsenic.

So the issue isn't simply that tobacco companies "add chemicals". Harmful substances can come from the plant itself, the way tobacco is grown and processed, ingredients used in manufacturing and, importantly, the process of burning it.

Australia's rules around tobacco ingredients also changed substantially in 2025. Since the 1st of July 2025, tobacco products sold in Australia must comply with new rules prohibiting a range of ingredients and product features, including menthol, many flavouring ingredients, added sugars and sweeteners, clove, synthetic cooling or masking agents and flavour capsules.

That doesn't make tobacco sold in Australia chemical free or safe. Nicotine remains in the tobacco, other substances can already be present in the plant or form during processing, and burning tobacco still creates carbon monoxide, carcinogens and many other toxic substances.

Tobacco smoke and cannabis smoke

Tobacco isn't the only source of smoke exposure when cannabis is being smoked.

Burning cannabis also produces smoke containing irritants and other potentially harmful substances. That doesn't mean the long term health evidence for cannabis smoking and tobacco smoking is identical.

The evidence linking tobacco smoking with cancers, cardiovascular disease, COPD and premature death is extensive. Research into cannabis smoke and particularly long term cannabis and tobacco co use is less complete, and recent expert reviews still identify important gaps in what we know about the combined effects on lung health.

What we can say more confidently is that adding tobacco to cannabis adds tobacco smoke and nicotine exposure to whatever exposure was already coming from smoking cannabis.

When the two habits start getting tangled together

One of the less obvious things about cannabis and tobacco is how closely the two behaviours can become linked.

If nicotine is part of the experience every time you consume cannabis, your brain can start associating the cannabis ritual with nicotine as well. Things like rolling, packing a cone, sitting in a certain place, finishing a meal or being around particular people can all become cues for both substances rather than just one.

If you also smoke cigarettes… there can be another layer to it.

Cigarettes often develop routines of their own. Someone might smoke when they wake up, after eating, while having a drink, during a break, when they're stressed or before bed. Cannabis can develop its own routines, and when cigarettes, tobacco and cannabis repeatedly show up around the same times, those cues can start overlapping.

You might find that cannabis makes you want a cigarette because that's what you normally have afterwards. A cigarette might make you think about cannabis. Packing a cone might trigger a nicotine craving before you've even consumed anything.

Research into cannabis and tobacco co use suggests that the shared route of smoking, shared cues and consuming the substances together may all help link the behaviours. Overlapping withdrawal symptoms can make the relationship even harder to untangle.

This can sometimes make cravings difficult to understand. You might feel like you're craving cannabis when part of what you're responding to is actually nicotine, the familiar smoking ritual or the expectation that the two normally come together.

Sometimes you might want cannabis. Sometimes you might actually want nicotine. Sometimes you might want both. Being able to notice the difference can give you a clearer picture of what's actually driving the urge to consume.

What it can feel like

Adding tobacco can change the experience, particularly if you're not used to nicotine or you consume more than expected.

Some effects can include:

A stronger or quicker head rush
Dizziness or feeling light-headed
Nausea or vomiting
Sweating or clammy skin
A racing or pounding heart
Headache
Feeling shaky
Coughing or throat irritation
Anxiety or feeling overstimulated

Some of these overlap with effects people can experience from cannabis itself, which can make it difficult to tell what is coming from what.

If you suddenly feel nauseous, dizzy, sweaty, shaky or faint after consuming cannabis mixed with tobacco, nicotine may be contributing to the experience.

Your usual nicotine exposure matters too. Someone who regularly smokes cigarettes may react differently to tobacco in a mix than someone with very little nicotine tolerance.

Reducing harm if you mix cannabis and tobacco

None of this is about telling you that you have to stop mixing the two. It's about understanding what tobacco is adding so you can make more informed choices.

Using less tobacco in your mix means less tobacco exposure from that mix. It doesn't remove the risks completely, but it reduces how much tobacco and nicotine you're adding to your cannabis.

Be aware of your nicotine tolerance. Someone who rarely consumes nicotine may feel dizzy, nauseous or shaky from an amount that someone who regularly smokes tobacco barely notices.

Give yourself time before having more. If the experience doesn't feel the way you expected, adding more cannabis or tobacco straight away can make it harder to work out what is affecting you.

If you start feeling sick or faint, stop adding to it. Sit or lie somewhere safe and give yourself some time.

If you also smoke cigarettes, think about the whole pattern. Tobacco in your cannabis is only one part of your overall tobacco and nicotine exposure. A cigarette during the day, tobacco in a cone later and another cigarette afterwards are all contributing to it.

Taking tobacco out of your cannabis can still make a difference even if you continue smoking cigarettes. It reduces the tobacco you're consuming during your cannabis sessions and changes one of the ways cannabis and nicotine have repeatedly been paired together.

That can sometimes make cravings easier to understand too. What feels like wanting cannabis might sometimes be wanting nicotine, wanting a cigarette, wanting the familiar combination of the two or actually wanting cannabis.

Removing tobacco from your cannabis doesn't mean you have to stop smoking cigarettes at the same time. You might want to change one, both or neither. They're different choices.

Try to avoid exposing other people to tobacco smoke. Second hand tobacco smoke contains toxic chemicals too and can unfortunately harm people around you.

You don't need to decide that you're quitting tobacco completely before any of these things become useful.

If you want to separate tobacco from cannabis

If tobacco only appears in your cannabis, removing it may also mean significantly reducing or stopping your nicotine exposure.

If you smoke cigarettes as well, taking tobacco out of your cannabis removes one source of tobacco and nicotine but doesn't remove the nicotine you're still getting from cigarettes.

Either way, cannabis may feel different without tobacco. Part of the familiar sensation, head rush or ritual may have been coming from nicotine or simply from being used to consuming the two together.

Separating them can also change the habit itself. Cannabis no longer automatically comes with tobacco every time you consume it, which can make it easier to start noticing what you're actually craving.

You may still find that the two behaviors trigger each other. Some cannabis might make you want a cigarette because that's what you've always done with it, or lighting a cigarette might make you think about cannabis.

Changing parts of the routine can sometimes help separate them. That might mean not keeping tobacco with your cannabis, noticing whether you automatically smoke a cigarette before or afterwards, changing how you prepare your cannabis or simply paying attention to the moments when the two habits seem to pull each other along.

Removing tobacco from your cannabis doesn't mean you have to stop cigarettes at exactly the same time.

Stopping cigarettes doesn't mean you have to stop cannabis and if you eventually want to change both, that's another option too.

What nicotine withdrawal can look and feel like

Nicotine withdrawal becomes relevant when you significantly reduce or stop your overall nicotine intake, not simply because you've changed one particular way of consuming it.

If tobacco in your cannabis is your main source of nicotine, removing it may cause withdrawal.

If you also smoke cigarettes and continue getting similar amounts of nicotine from them, taking tobacco out of your cannabis may not have the same effect.

If you're reducing cigarettes, tobacco in your cannabis or both, you might notice:

Cravings
Irritability or frustration
Restlessness
Anxiety or feeling on edge
Difficulty concentrating
Trouble sleeping
Increased appetite

Nicotine withdrawal is usually strongest during the first week. For many people it fades over about two to four weeks, although it can last longer.

Some of these experiences overlap with cannabis withdrawal, including cravings, restlessness, sleep problems and changes in mood. If you're reducing both at the same time, it may not always be obvious which one is contributing to what.

If nicotine cravings are making it difficult

Nicotine replacement therapy, usually shortened to NRT, includes things like patches, gum, lozenges and mouth sprays. It provides nicotine without tobacco smoke and can help reduce cravings and withdrawal symptoms.

This can be relevant whether your nicotine has mainly come from cigarettes, tobacco mixed with cannabis or a combination of both.

If you're thinking about reducing or stopping nicotine, a pharmacist, doctor or Quitline counsellor can help you work out whether NRT or another option might suit you.

And you don't have to have decided to quit cannabis for nicotine support to be useful.

Is cannabis without tobacco safer?

Removing tobacco from your cannabis removes the nicotine and tobacco-related part of the exposure, which is a meaningful reduction in harm.

It doesn't make smoking cannabis harmless.

Burning cannabis still produces smoke containing irritants and other potentially harmful substances, and regular cannabis smoking can affect the respiratory system. The long term evidence around cannabis smoke isn't identical to the much larger body of evidence around tobacco smoking, so it wouldn't be accurate to say they carry exactly the same risks.

If you also smoke cigarettes, taking tobacco out of your cannabis reduces the tobacco you're consuming through your cannabis sessions, but you're still being exposed to nicotine and tobacco smoke through cigarettes.

It can still be a meaningful change because cannabis and tobacco are no longer automatically being consumed together every time.

So the answer isn't that cannabis without tobacco suddenly becomes risk-free. It's that removing tobacco removes an additional source of nicotine, tobacco smoke and tobacco related harm to the mix.

When to get urgent help

Most unpleasant reactions after cannabis and tobacco won't require an ambulance, but serious symptoms shouldn't automatically be dismissed as a green out, a nicotine head rush or "just the tobacco".

Call 000 if someone:

Can't be woken or is becoming difficult to get a response from
Has serious trouble breathing
Has collapsed or lost consciousness
Has a seizure
Has severe or worsening chest pain
Is extremely confused or seriously unwell
Has been exposed to a large amount of nicotine or another substance and you're worried about poisoning

You don't need to wait for every sign before calling.

If someone may have swallowed tobacco or a nicotine product, or you think they've been exposed to a potentially dangerous amount, call the Poisons Information Centre on 13 11 26, anywhere in Australia, 24 hours a day.

In a medical emergency, call 000.

Calling an ambulance doesn't automatically mean calling the police. Paramedics are there to provide medical care. Healthdirect advises that paramedics don't need to involve police unless they feel they are in danger.

Where to get help

Emergency: 000

Poisons Information Centre: 13 11 26. Advice about poisoning and potentially dangerous exposures, 24 hours a day.

Quitline: 13 78 48. Free and confidential counselling for people who want support around smoking, vaping or nicotine. You don't need to have everything figured out before calling.

National Alcohol and Other Drug Hotline: 1800 250 015. Free and confidential information and support about your own or someone else's alcohol and other drug use.

DirectLine (Victoria): 1800 888 236. Free and confidential alcohol and other drug counselling, information and referral, available 24 hours a day.

You don't have to want to stop cannabis, tobacco or anything else before asking someone for information or support.

Sources and further reading

Alcohol and Drug Foundation: Tobacco. For nicotine effects, dependence, cannabis and tobacco co-use and harm reduction.

Alcohol and Drug Foundation: Cannabis. For cannabis effects and information about mixing cannabis with tobacco.
Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing: Toxic chemicals in tobacco smoke. For chemicals produced through tobacco use and combustion.
Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing: Tobacco product reforms. For Australia's current restrictions on tobacco ingredients and product features.
Schauer, Rosenberry & Peters: Marijuana and tobacco co-administration in blunts, spliffs, and mulled cigarettes: a systematic literature review. For cannabis and tobacco co-use and nicotine exposure.
Agrawal, Budney & Lynskey: The co-occurring use and misuse of cannabsi and tobacco. For research into shared patterns, dependence and withdrawal.
Quit: Nicotine withdrawal and Quitline. For withdrawal symptoms, timelines and support.
Healthdirect: Poisoning. For emergency and Poisons Information Centre advice.
More of the research behind Buducation is on our sources page.

A note on what this is

This is general education, not medical advice. It can't account for your health, medications or individual circumstances.

If you're worried about your tobacco or cannabis consumption, nicotine withdrawal or something that happened after consuming, speak with a doctor, pharmacist or another health professional.

Read our full disclaimer.