We all know that cannabis and canna edibles have long been used for medical purposes. Despite that, it still has side effects. Let’s discuss them in this article!
Why may side effects occur?
As you may already know cannabis has a special chemical cannabinoid in it – THC. That chemical makes it work and we feel high. Moreover, our body is equipped with cannabinoid receptors, THC and other canna chemicals bind to them, to the lipids and stay in the body. They also increase the production of natural hormones and substances which makes us happy and relaxed. This is where the danger lies. When we stop smoking cannabis the body goes through tremendous stress and side effects may occur.
What kinds of side effects can I experience?
Edibles side effects, as well as cannabis side effects, can be distinguished into at least two types, based on how they affect the body. They can be psychological and physiological. We can’t say which type is the worst as they usually appear simultaneously and both are quite unpleasant. Psychological edible side effects occur because cannabinoids contained in butter, cookies, or whenever cooked, affect your brain and nervous system. The reaction may vary depending on personal experience but usually, such side effects include:
- Drowsiness;
- Puzzled consciousness;
- Decreased attention as well as the altered perception of time and space.
This is why we smoke or eat edibles after all. But this is also why you should eat edibles only if you know for sure that you have no other plans. It is forbidden to drive or to work under edible effects because the consequences of such actions can be disastrous.
The second type is the physiological side effects. They also may vary, but how can we distinguish someone who ate an edible? By the stupid smile on their face of course! Edibles produce relaxing effects and increase dopamine production making you smile and laugh a lot. Your heart rate may also increase as well as your hunger. You need to be very careful not to eat your weekly reserves in one night.
How can I counter side effects?
This is a very reasonable question. The most obvious way of countering side effects is not to smoke or eat edibles at all! We understand that it is hard to refuse such pleasure. That’s why we can offer more realistic ways of countering edibles’ side effects. However, we can’t promise that these methods are 100% effective. As side effects, they are quite individual. You can find a lot of methods online and the majority of them will include intaking additional medicine to restore cognitive functions or counter other side effects. We can’t recommend the same because we are not sure how healthy is that. So here are some general recommendations:
- Drink more water. This fights only consequences and not the reason (THC affects the gland’s work) but still, it may work! At least you will suffer less from dryness in your mouth.
- Try out a healthy lifestyle. This may sound strange but at least it will increase your quality of life if not helpful with countering side effects. We recommend you to exercise, maybe start jogging and normalize your sleep. Such methods are even used to cure cannabis addiction. Such a way of life can help you in normalizing cyclic AMP which was suppressed by THC (active edibles compound). In turn, this is crucial for your further normal body functioning and restored circadian rhythm.
- Drink coffee. Surprisingly, caffeine can take you out of the relaxing state cannabis gives you. Yes, it will ruin the fun but this can help if you suddenly need to go somewhere. Thanks to Adenosine 2a receptors blockage.
We just take a peek at the variety of different ways to counter edibles’ side effects. You can find more online or try experimenting yourself!
The most common edible side effects
Mostly, edible side effects are expressed in an individual capacity. As it is written on the official Canada website cannabis and edible side effects can be short-term and long-term. In this article, we won’t classify them this way but will tell you about the most common edible side effects.
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Extremely long-lasting effect
For some, this may be a benefit. But not for all edible users long-lasting high is a pleasant state. Cannabis edibles may look innocent but they consist of more THC than regular cannabis. Moreover, they take more time to start acting because they enter the body not directly like with vaping or smoking but through your stomach. This results in one of the most common edibles side effects – long-lasting high state (up to 5 hours).
You may also feel not only relaxed but a bit sleepy. Imagine being at the edge of falling asleep for 5 hours! You definitely can’t combine such a state with working or driving. Don’t even think about driving drunk or high! So, it is crucial to be a responsible citizen and plan edibles use beforehand. In this way, you will get only pleasure without negative consequences for yourself or your loved ones.
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Hallucinations and nervousness
These two are truly 2 horsemen of the apocalypse. Such unpleasant edibles side effects like hallucinations and nervousness can have severe consequences. Cannabis edibles as well as cannabis itself influence the central nervous system and brain. This can make you see something you are not supposed to see and this is horrifying!
Increased anxiety can lead you to panic, making rash acts. And increased fear can lead to hyperventilation. Both those things are extremely unpleasant and dangerous. They usually happen if you ate too many edibles or have pre-existing psychological conditions. However, you should be aware of such edibles side effects.
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Breathing problems
It may sound pretty surprising that edibles that you eat affect breathing but that is so. And we are talking not only about hyperventilation we mentioned before but also about constriction of the trachea and other respiratory problems. Those mostly happen with children, but who knows, it is better to be prepared for anything!
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Cottonmouth
It’s a pity that such a poetic title belongs to one of the nastiest edibles side effects. Dry mouth is a common thing when you eat canna edibles. This happens because excessive THC suppresses saliva production by affecting the submandibular gland.
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Oily skin
As we mentioned before, cannabis and its edibles affect almost all processes in the body by affecting the brain and nervous system. Oily or pimply skin is the result of increased testosterone. Yes, THC can even make your body produce more tests, it affects oil glands and makes your skin age faster, and has more acne.
Bottom line
Today we have discussed the most common edibles side effects. You should remember that even medicine can turn into poison if used incorrectly or abused. Be careful, don’t eat too many edibles to stay healthy and happy!
