By Steven Butterman
Cannabis infused edibles are a great way to medicate for many patients. They’re discreet, odorless, long lasting, and offer a different effect than inhaling cannabis. Edibles are also how most THC overdoses occur, so it’s important to know the proper ways of maximizing their medicinal effects without overdoing it.
Digesting cannabis through edibles typically results in heavy body effects, which can be extremely beneficial for patients suffering from pain, cancer and cancerrelated treatment. The onset of edible effects takes longer than any inhalation method due to the route it takes to the brain. When inhaled, Delta-9-THC, which is primarily responsible for any psychoactive effects, goes straight to the brain via blood absorption in the lungs and can be felt almost instantaneously. When eaten however, that Delta-9-THC travels through the stomach and into the liver, where it is converted into 11-Hydroxy-THC. That conversion process can take up to 90 minutes, resulting in the wise and often-repeated adage, “start low and go slow!” 11-Hydroxy- THC is more potent than Delta-9-THC and crosses the blood-brain barrier more easily. It also lasts a lot longer, with many patients feeling effects for 8 hours or more. Because 11-Hydroxy-THC is a different molecule, your brain will build a separate tolerance to it. Having a high tolerance for inhaled THC does not mean you will have a high tolerance for ingested THC. Cannabis can be infused into almost anything that is cooked or baked, but typical products in the New Mexico market are hard candies, chocolates, and a range of baked deserts. Producers typically work with manufacturers to infuse their cannabis into edible products. At Southwest Organic Producers (SWOP), we currently produce our coconut oils and tinctures in-house, and outsource our hard candies and chocolates to Bhang, a local and national manufacturer. Bhang is known for their professional chocolatiers and award winning non-medicated chocolates and candies found at retail outlets like Whole Foods. Every time SWOP produces an edible, whether in-house or through Bhang, we use only strain-specific high-quality flower buds to extract. This gives our edibles reliable strain effects, allowing patients to fine-tune based on their needs, then recreate the effects that work. If a patient desires a different effect or has an additional medical condition, we can then suggest a different strain based on their needs. Types of edibles and how they work SWOP chose to work with Bhang because of their clean Super Critical CO2 extraction process. Leaving no chemical residue at all, this process pulls the active chemicals off the cannabis plant material and infuses them into edibles. Bhang tests the CO2 oil after it is made to determine the quantity each edible will be infused with. The oil is also tested for microbial content to assure consumer safety. After production, the edibles are tested once again to ensure the proper ratio was achieved. When you buy a Bhang chocolate bar or bag of hard candy, you can be sure the cannabinoid content listed on the packaging is exactly what you are getting. SWOP’s in-house edibles follow that same dedication and are typically one of the best deals in our store, requiring no additional overhead. Our Cannabis-Infused Coconut Oil is one of the best carriers for cannabinoids and terpenoids, and we offer it in a wide range of strains and strengths. Potency varies depending on how much cannabis flower is used in the production of the coconut oil. SWOP tests each batch to determine the exact amounts of cannabinoid content as well as for any microbiological contaminants. This ensures patients know exactly what they are getting and that it is safe to consume. Terpene tests performed on our coconut oil confirm that SWOP’s proprietary production process maintains a full terpene profile. This translates into an accurate and consistent strain effect. The coconut oils are also kept
in the raw state, meaning all cannabinoids are in the “acid” form, such as THC-A, and CBD-A. These acid cannabinoids are non-psychoactive, but extremely potent anti-inflammatories and can be tolerated in much higher doses than neutral cannabinoids like THC. Coconut oils can be cooked with, used topically, or melted into a hot beverage. It is important to remember that once heated, the product will now be decarboxylated, meaning it will be psychoactive. Tinctures are a bit different from edibles in that they are absorbed sublingually (under the tongue). Mucosal membranes in the mouth are a great and often overlooked way of ingesting cannabinoids. Just place a half-full dropper of tincture under your tongue and hold it there to start the absorption. With sublingual ingestion, cannabinoids are absorbed directly into the blood stream, so you don’t have to wait for it to pass through your liver to get dispersed into your blood like other edibles. This means the effects from a tincture can be felt much sooner than edibles, normally between 5 and 20 minutes. Dosing The recommended starting dose for edibles is between 2.5 and 10 milligrams of THC, and around the same for CBD. Patients familiar with THC side-effects can start a little higher, between 5 and 10 milligrams. More experienced edible users will find that their useful dose gets higher as their body develops tolerance with most users plateauing between 20 and 50 mg of THC. It is recommended to suck on whatever edible you try instead of swallowing it. This bypasses the liver and digestion, and gives the medication a faster activation. It is recommended to start with a small dose and wait at least an hour or two before taking more. Consult with your budtenders and tell them if you have tried edibles before, and how you responded. Keep in mind that stomach contents, weight, body fat, metabolism, and whether a patient has used cannabis or edibles before, as well as hormonal imbalances, all affect how the chemicals are absorbed into the blood stream. The effects from edibles can be extremely potent, and an overdose is not a pleasant experience. So remember the mantra, “start low, and go slow” with edibles. In the case of an overdose, remember that the feeling will not last forever, and that you will eventually return to normal. Eat some black pepper or some CBD (or both) to help reduce the mental side-effects, but generally you just have to wait for the THC to clear out of your system. No one has ever died from a cannabis overdose, but anyone that has had one can tell you they are not pleasant. Ease into edibles and you’ll find they are one of the best forms of cannabis medication, especially for those looking to get a good night’s sleep. A good dose of the right edible before bed will keep you snoring until morning! DISCLAIMER: Some patient’s bodies do not readily absorb cannabinoids through the GI tract. If you are not feeling effects from edibles, try them on an empty stomach and let them melt in your mouth so they can be absorbed sublingually to achieve greater effects. Steven Butterman is the Processing Manager at Southwest Organic Producers and a retired U.S. Army Infantryman who has successfully used cannabis to treat PTSD.
