When marijuana tastes yummy
I haven’t talked much about “edibles” on The Plant Rant, mostly because I haven’t gotten around to it. Recently I was speaking with a friend from Alpha Medicinals and got motivated to write this article. I want to get this out for the patients that are looking for a way to medicate with marijuana without smoking or using a vaporizer. This was necessary for me during 7 hour chemo sessions, and I had to learn along the way.
First, let me whet your appetite. Here’s Alpha’s full item list:
Now I’m willing to bet you’re ravenous! By the way, if you want any of these specific items, you’ll have to get them at a dispensary. I’m sure Alpha will tell you where to go if you contact them. They’re pretty common up North but are just now growing into the San Diego dispensaries. Ask for them by name and you’ll help a compassionate group of people grow their business and you’ll have some reliable marijuana edibles.
(Note: I don’t accept compensation of any kind for mentioning a product or website. I tell you about what I like, and insist that I don’t even get free samples. I buy their stuff, and if I like it I talk about it. And if I DON’T like it I talk about it. I may do ‘sponsored reviews’ later, because I maintain this site without any ads and I’m broke, but I’ll tell you clearly when I’m being paid for my opinion. Ok, that’s done, now let’s talk about edibles.)
The basics on edibles are simple. Unlike vaporizing the trichomes on the marijuana flowers by passing hot air over them, the dried and ground flowers are heated in butter or oil enough to release the active ingredients and infuse them into the butter/oil. Note that the active ingredients actually TRANSFER to the fat molecules in the oil, so the actual plant material is generally removed afterward and before cooking. This allows them to be efficiently used in cooking and delivered into your bloodstream. BUT, digestion is required first, as with any food, so the full effect takes about an hour to fully “mature”. Also, the effect will last quite a bit longer. I generally feel nothing by 4 or so hours after a vaporizer dose, but with edibles I feel some effect 6-8 hours later. (Just MUCH weaker.)
WARNING! Edibles are often yummy, by design. They don’t infuse pot into broccoli; they use cookies and candies and brownies and all sorts of rich buttery treats. If you overeat with normal sweets, you may get fat. If you overeat with marijuana treats, you could become uncomfortable for a little while. Remember that you can’t really overdose on marijuana. It just doesn’t happen. But you can get paranoid or feel like you have to just lay in one position for hours with your eyes closed. The rest won’t hurt you, but why not just eat moderately and avoid that effect, you know?
But I’m getting ahead of myself. First, you need to know that most dispensaries have edibles in addition to dried flowers, but there’s no standardized system for measuring the potency of the treats. Most of these edibles will be made with about half a gram of ground pot, enough to give an experienced marijuana user a slight body buzz, or a new marijuana user a deeper high with more pain relief and possible sleepiness. Some edibles don’t even list their marijuana content, so assume with these that you’re dealing with more active ingredient. Knowing that it takes 30 minutes to an hour for the full effect to hit you, eat half or a third of the item and wait to see how it affects you. I’ve nibbled on a large ‘rice krispy treat for 4-5 hours during chemo with excellent results.
If you’ve read the Getting Started articles (at the top and left of this page you’ll find the links), you’ll remember that the two primary types of marijuana are sativa and indica. Indica tends to make you sleepier, for some people at least. So you’ll want to ask which type is used in an edible if you’re looking for a sativa (awake and alert) versus an indica (sleepy) effect. I use edibles only on really painful days, so I always prefer an indica-based product so that I can sleep the hours away.
The effect of digested marijuana is different than when it is smoked/vaporized. As I mentioned above, it lasts longer, but it also feels different. I prefer the instant effect of vapor hitting my lungs and the active ingredients going straight into my bloodstream. If I’m about to puke from chemo, I need that urgency. But the anti-nausea effect is just as strong with edibles; it just takes longer. So I use edibles only when vaporization is inconvenient or impossible (e.g. sitting in a hospital infusion center, they tend to frown on you pulling out a portable vaporizer and puffing away).
So on chemo days, I vaporize before I go, which will keep me reasonably comfortable for 3-4 hours. Then a few hours later while I’m hooked to the IV, I eat a half of an edible, wait 30-45 minutes and start slowly nibbling at the rest of it over the next 4 hours or so. I would never describe chemo days as pleasant, but it’s a hell of lot better when you’re not hurling every few minutes. And when the medicines burn through the vein (a unique sort of pain), the marijuana helps me relax through the pain and not mind as much.
Some of you may be wondering how they taste. I’ve had one item that was a little strange tasting, but mostly they were as good as an equivalent item that does NOT contain marijuana. You can always stick with a brand like Alpha that has reliable potency and taste. Pick a favorite and use that. And I must insert here a VERY IMPORTANT POINT: keep edibles away from kids. Let me repeat…AWAY from kids. They’re not old enough to make the decision to use marijuana, in my opinion at least, but they will eat that amazing brownie you left in the fridge every time. Lock it up if you have to (can you just imagine a little lock box in the fridge?! 
) but at a minimum make sure it’s clearly marked. (I mark mine as POISON even if it’s up in a cabinet they can’t reach, just in case.)
If you’ve avoided medical marijuana because the idea of breathing either smoke OR vapor into your lungs bothers you, edibles are your solution. They’re easy to consume (hard to STOP consuming, actually) and effective. A bit before bed or chemo they are a great solution for pain, nausea and relief from anxiety or “monkey mind”, when your thoughts race as is quite common for suffering patients. There are many brands and types and dosages, so read the labels carefully and nibble moderately. And as always, if you have any questions or want some personal help, just click that little Contact button at the top right of any The Plant Rant page and let me know. I love helping patients get help, and it’s free to you.
Stay well, friends!
