Why Do Foods with Cannabis Produce a Stronger High than Smoking?

Foods containing cannabis are renowned for being the most powerful way to feel its effects fast. One of the possible causes of this is that we eat more quickly than we smoke, such that our body is receiving more cannabinoids in less time. But this is not the only reason.

Some experts believe that our bodies are able to absorb all the THC (tetrahydrocannabinol, cannabis’s main psychoactive element) through oral ingestion, in contrast to smoking, through which a great portion of the THC is burned or lost. But neither does all that is taken orally reach the blood: according to a study by the National Institute of Health (USA), the bioavailability of THC ranges from only 6 to 10%.

The real reason is related to the metabolisation of marijuana in our body: the process is different when we eat than when we smoke. During the metabolisation phase, if we have administered cannabis orally, approximately half of the THC is ingested, yielding a much more powerful effect, reaching the brain far faster.

11-hidroxi-THC is the most powerful synthetic cannabinoid known today, according to the Spanish Cannabinoid Research Society. We absorb less of this ingredient when we smoke or inhale marijuana. Thus, when we eat foods containing marijuana we get much higher.

So, the next time you want to consume cannabis, you might choose to eat foods that contain marijuana, thereby receiving twofold benefits: you can nourish yourself and enjoy some much stronger effects at the same time.

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With information from High Times and Seic.