What Are Cannabis Edibles?
A cannabis edible is food that is made or infused with cannabis. In most dispensaries, theyโre products like gummies, hard candy, tablets, cookies, brownies or fudge. While many people still prefer the traditional method of smoking cannabis, others are unable to smoke, live in a place where smoking is prohibited, or are seeking a different kind of cannabis experience. Cannabis edibles affect the body differently than smoking cannabis, and they are an alternative to smoking without losing the ability to get high.
How Much Should I Try?
One of the first things to think about when deciding to try an edible is the dosage. New consumers of edibles are recommended to start slow and go low, meaning taking something with a low dosage, and increasing the dosage slowly based on the effects you feel. A beginner will want to start by trying 5mg. There are plenty of products at Pharmhouse that are already in 5 mg servings. Or if something bigger looks good to youโjust cut it to make 5 mg.
No matter the dosage, cannabis edibles take time to absorb into your system. The onset of effects may occur as quickly as 20 minutes or as slowly as 3 hours, and the duration can last between 4 and 6 hours. Like alcohol, cannabis will affect each person differently. A 100 pound individual consuming an edible on an empty stomach will feel effects more than a 150 pound individual with a full stomach. A personโs weight and metabolism have an effect, too. We assume that you want to feel some effect, so before you venture into edibles, have a bite to eatโbut donโt have an edible following a big meal.
What does it feel like?
The sensation people get from smoking or eating cannabis are similar. But the way they ingest the plant determines how the body processes THC. Because the method of ingestion is different between eating and inhaling cannabis, at first when experimenting with dosage users typically feel more high than what they would normally feel when smoking cannabis. Smokers will feel the effects much faster, about 5 to 10 minutes after smoking. Edible consumers are ingesting the THC through the stomach so it must be absorbed in the body. This causes the sensation to be felt more slowly, but ultimately in a stronger way. An edible high can last as long as 10 hours.
What Happens if I Don’t Feel Anything After 30 Minutes
That is totally normal and perfectly fine! Wait at least two hours before ingesting more of your edible. Stories are told time and time again about somebody with a bad edible experience, and overconsumption is most often the reason. After waiting a short period of time and feeling nothing, someone will decide to eat more. Eventually the effects begin to set in, and they are much higher than originally expected. Resist the temptation!
Remember, slow and low.
What Do I Do If I Get Too High?
The first thing to do is take a deep breath, attempt to calm yourself downโdonโt let your head and random thoughts take over.
Remember that it is impossible to overdose or reach poisonous levels from THC. No one has ever died from too much cannabis.
Here are a couple of things to do: settle in and watch some TV, listen to some music, drink plenty of water, eat if you have the urge Phone a friend or chat with someone who knows cannabis, they’ll let you know things are going to be alright. Injust go to bed and fall deeply asleep. Sadly there is no cure discovered yet for getting a bit too high, other than not overconsuming. Itโs common cannabis knowledge that a dropper of CBD or chewing on a few peppercorns will help moderate the high.
Cannabis edibles are all about experimenting with dosage to find what works best for you. Start slow and dose low, donโt eat on an empty stomach, and always stay calm.
Our owner, Casey talked about edibles with Revue magazineโcheck out his insights.
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Pharmhouse Wellness appreciates guest blogs like this one. If youโre interested in contributing let us know.
Special thanks to guest blogger, Sam Halpern, GVSU Class of 2020