Cannabis edibles will be available in Canada for recreational use some time in 2019. This is good news for people looking for a smokeless cannabis experience, with edibles offering the perfect alternative to smoking or vaporizing. Expect a wide variety of cannabis edibles to hit the market next year, with various cannabis-infused foods being developed for what people are dubbing the ‘second wave of legalization’ in Canada.
It is important to understand the differences between edibles and smoking weed. Each one affects you differently, and while the outcome of getting high remains the same, how you get there and what the high is like is often very different.
Your Body Absorbs THC Differently
THC is the compound within cannabis that gets you high. Smoking or vaping cannabis causes the THC to be absorbed through the bloodstream via the lungs, whereas THC from ediblesis metabolized by the liver, causing it to be absorbed into the bloodstream in a much more efficient manner.
This efficiency results in a more intense high that you get from smoking, as the THC goes directly to your brain rather than waiting to go through the stomach and liver. So, expect a much more intense high from eating an edible compared to smoking or vaping, even if using similar amounts of THC.
The Effects of Edibles Take Much Longer to Hit
Because an edible needs to be processed through the stomach and the liver before being metabolized and absorbed into your bloodstream, the effects take much longer to arrive than smoking or vaping weed. It varies from every user, but edibles take anywhere from 30 minutes over two hours to hit you.
When smoking, the cannabis is absorbed very quickly into your blood after going into the lungs, where it’s then carried to the brain. This process takes anywhere from 5-10 minutes, or sometimes less, so you’ll always feel high quicker when smoking.
Unfortunately, this has led to many unfortunate situations with edibles, where people don’t realize how long it takes to hit them so end up eating too much to try and feel the effects. By the time the THC is absorbed, they realize they take too high a dose and experience a very intense, often overwhelming high.
The Duration Differs
Another massive difference between smoking cannabis and eating an edible is the duration of the high. Smoking or vaping weed hits you much quicker than an edible but also last a much shorter duration, typically peaking at around 15-20 minutes of smoking and diminishing 30-60 minutes from there.
Edibles last far longer than this. It’s hard to predict how long because each person’s body is different, with some saying the edible high lasts 3-6 hours, while others last upwards of 12 hours. The amount taken impacts the duration, but in any case, expect a very long high that could last most of the day.
A Very Different High
As mentioned, the high from an edible is much more intense than that from smoking, but it’s also quite different. For instance, many report a more intense body high that lasts a very long time, while there is more chance of a psychedelic-like head-high from an edible.
Don’t forget to check out which Budderweedscannabis products each province is offering throughOntario Cannabis Store (OCS), Alberta Cannabis, BC Cannabis Store or Societe Quebec de Cannabis‘ websites.
