Ever wonder why Edibles hit harder than smoking cannabis? In this article we explain how THC reacts inside the body after eating any cannabis food, its effects, duration and what the ideal dose is.
What Happens Inside The Body?
To begin with, you should know that THC is absorbed differently when ingested in food. When we smoke or vaporize cannabinoids are absorbed into the blood through the lungs and go directly to the brain, giving us a much faster but less powerful effect. Instead, THC Edibles make it through the digestive system. During the absorption process, THC passes through the liver and upon metabolism, Delta-9 THC (normal THC) is rapidly converted to 11-hydroxy-THC (the most active and potent metabolite of THC) and easily passes through the blood barrier / Brain. It is why the effects are much more powerful and long-lasting.
When eating cannabis, the process to feel its effects is much longer. First it passes through the digestive system, and then it reaches the blood and finally the brain. This can take from 30 minutes to 2 hours, but this also depends on each person, depending on the tolerance and dose to THC, the effect can last from 4 to 12 hours in the body.
Dosage For Edibles –
It is important to measure the doses of marijuana ingested; be careful to avoid a possible pale skin, feel uncomfortable or that the effect will last much longer than you had planned. We recommend that for each serving you try 10mg of marijuana, and if you have less tolerance you can start with 5mg. There is not much you can really do to control the dosage, as there can be very small amounts that turn out to be quite a bit stronger than expected. It is why it is important to know the percentage of THC in your herb, to know how strong it is, so that later you can incorporate it into edibles when cooking. Every time you eat cannabis edibles, you can use your own experience to perfect the doses you need. And so you will know how tolerant you are and even know an approximate of how long it takes you to put.
Lower Health Risk
The decision to smoke or not is primarily related to health. Medicinal users often smoke cannabis because it works faster. However, when other alternatives are offered, many turn to another form of ingestion. Marijuana ingestion has a different effect on the body. Cannabis taken by mouth induces a more physical high. Furthermore, cannabinoids are distributed more evenly throughout the body. That said edibles are much more difficult to use for therapeutic purposes. Why? The dose and effect always present problems. It’s just as easy to take too low a dose as it is to overdo it – even with pre-dosed commercial products.