A Beginner’s Guide to Edibles: How To Navigate Cannabis-Infused Edibles In The New Age Of Legalization
We want your first experience to be safe and enjoyable. That’s why we created this Beginner’s Guide to Edibles especially for you!
It’s important to listen to proper guidance from those who have been where you’re about to go for a safe and comfortable experience. While there isn’t “technically” a way to overdose, there is such a thing as consuming too much. Having too much cannabis can cause your mind and body to become uncomfortable, leaving you wanting to stop the experience right away.
Beginner’s Guide to Edibles: The Essential Survival Tips for Consuming Cannabis Edibles
Start low and go slow!
Take it slow and have patience. Start with a standard 10 mg dose (or less, especially if you’re female) of a regulated edible. Now, chances are, it’ll be delicious and you’ll want more. However, you need to wait at least an hour before considering taking more to ensure you don’t consume too much THC. You won’t die from over-consumption, but the experience of feeling like you’ve taken too much is enough to make you put down edibles for a time. Keep in mind that it will take a while for you to feel the effects and be patient!
Cannabis-Infused Edibles: How to Stay Safe and Enjoy Your High
In this Beginner’s Guide to Edibles, we’ll teach you all you need to know to enjoy a safe journey when consuming edibles, including:
- What to Consider Before Consuming an Edible for the First Time
- Medical vs. Recreational
- What Types of Edibles Are There?
- Why Edibles Produce a Different Type of High
- What to Do if You Think You Took Too Much
What Do You Need to Consider Before Consuming an Edible for the First Time?
The Essentials: Beginner’s Guide to Edibles Safety 101
Know what goes into your body before putting it in your body. Current regulation is somewhat loose and will probably only tighten up as time moves forward. A few essential pieces of information will keep you safe and increase your chances of having an enjoyable experience while achieving the desired effect.
What You Need to Check
- Packaging
- Lab Tested For Purity
- THC & CBD Potency
Packaging, Testing & Potency
Edible labels should have all the information you need to know about the safety and purity of the product. Make sure you check the essential labels that indicate this product has a bit more regulation than being cooked up in a random kitchen. To have a consistent experience, choose edibles that have industrial, professional packaging and clearly displayed labels. Essential labeling should include THC & CBD potency, lab testing purity, and dose per amount.
Not all edibles are created equal, and doses can vary dramatically between products. If you’re ever uncertain, make sure to ask for a recommended dose size for an optimal experience.
Are You Using Cannabis Edibles For Medical or Recreational Purposes?
Recreational User
If you want to have a wild experience that takes you to the sky, take a bit of time and read about the type of high certain strains will produce. This information will help you find an edible that meets your needs. When consuming an edible, the central piece of wisdom is to have patience. If you take too much, understand that this feeling won’t last forever, even though it may feel like it at the time.
Medical User
Medical users need to approach cannabis-infused edibles with a little more caution than recreational users. Spend time researching which strain will most closely match the symptoms you are seeking relief from. Speak to a qualified budtender if you need help.
First-Time User
If you’re a first-time user, we’re sure this Beginner’s Guide to Edibles is essential. Some advice: Start with a standard 10 MG or less (see our edible dosage chart) dose and wait 60 minutes before taking more. You can’t overdose on cannabis. If you think you overdosed, stop and relax. Slowly take some pure CBD. Taking pure CBD prevents the psychoactive THC from having an effect and will sober you up quickly.
Beginner’s Guide to Edibles: What Types Are There?
Creative Methods For Consuming Cannabis-Infused Edibles
Cannabis-infused edibles have an endless amount of variety for creative consumption. Below is a short list — definitely not an exhaustive list — of edibles you can either purchase or make at home.
- Baked Goods
- Candy & Confections
- Beverages
- Vinegar & Oils
- Dry Mixes
- Jams, Jellies, Preserves, Nut Butter, Honey & Syrups
To make cannabis-infused edibles, all you need is cannabis and a little bit of understanding of the basics of cooking with cannabis.
Before cannabis can get you high, it has to be heated.
Cannabis has a natural safety mechanism pre-designed into it. You can’t consume raw marijuana and expect to have a psychoactive effect. Before it is heated, the molecule inside the raw cannabis bud is called THCA. Once you heat the cannabis, it decarboxylates and becomes the psychoactive THC molecule, which will trigger a high.
An essential and easy way to decarboxylate cannabis, which will activate the benign THCA into its psychoactive counterpart THC, is to use the oven. Take a cookie sheet and evenly break up your marijuana. Then bake for 30 – 40 minutes at 240 degrees Fahrenheit. Once you’ve done this, it makes infusing various edibles easy because the weed is already psychoactive.
Beginner’s Guide to Edibles: A Different Type Of High
Edibles Are a Different Type Of High
Smoking cannabis will bring on effects rapidly but those effects will also disappear quickly. Eating cannabis will make the effects come on more slowly, yet the effects will stay longer and go away more slowly. Ultimately, eating cannabis-infused edibles will have a longer-lasting impact that will (potentially) make you feel A LOT higher than smoking.
- Smoking Cannabis: Fast to feel effects & short lasting
- Eating Cannabis: Slow to feel effects & long lasting
Why Does Eating Weed Make You So Much Higher?
When you eat cannabis versus smoking it, the cannabis has to get digested before the body and brain can process the THC. Smoking lets the delta-9-THC go directly to the brain, whereas eating it allows a LOT of the delta-9-THC to be converted into a different chemical by the liver. Once the delta-9-THC gets to your liver, your body processes it and that is what is responsible for getting you four times higher. When the delta-9-THC gets to the liver, a different chemical comes out that is called 11-hydroxy-THC.
Beginner’s Guide to Edibles: What to Do If You Think You Took Too Much
How To Quickly Reverse The Feeling
If you feel too high, the general wisdom is to stay calm and keep some pure CBD nearby. Bear in mind that no one has died through the consumption of cannabis, yet it may feel like it at the moment. To lessen the effects, take some CBD. CBD counteracts THC and substantially neutralizes the impact by being its polar opposite. Consuming pure CBD can relieve the psychoactive effects or paranoia feeling that’s causing you to feel and think strange things.
Another method backed by science — we can assure you, it’s no old wives tale — is the black peppercorn method. Sniff (or preferably) chew on black peppercorns. No joke, black peppercorns can help tame too much THC. How so? Sciences believe the terpene beta-caryophyllene allows peppercorn to produce a phytocannabinoid-terpenoid effect that will temper your high and calm you.
If you follow the wisdom of those who have gone before you, then you should be ok and you will have an enjoyable experience. Your last resort should be to call 911. Don’t hesitate or feel bad if you need emergency services. It’s not illegal to ask for help!
Looking to boost your cannabis knowledge? Check out the Have a Heart Blog for a ton of articles on all sorts of weed-related subjects.
Want top-shelf cannabis at an affordable price? Order online from your local Have a Heart dispensary.
Comment