CANNABIS F.A.Q.

Smoking dried cannabis buds or hash and other concentrates produced from cannabis is probably the most popular form of medicating. Smoke is a very simple and satisfying delivery method. It surely doesn't hurt that many find cannabis smoke so delightfully flavorful! Many strains are known as much for their pallatte of flavors, as for their spectrum of effect.
Smoke is a quick and effective carrier for delivering cannabis’ active ingredients into the bloodstream. When cannabis is heated, the active ingredients are decarboxylated, meaning they loose a carbon atom, a processwhich makes the cannabinoids available for use by the body. Because cannabinoids reach the brain so rapidly when smoked, the patient may feel the effects almost immediately. In most cases, this means instantaneous relief with full benefits to follow once therapeutic level is reached.
Another big advantage of smoking is dosage control. Because the effects are felt so expediently, the patient can easily discern when they've had enough. Once they stop smoking, there should be little or no increase in effect. An exception is noted in some few strains, often described as "creepers", which may give a delay of 10 to 20 minutes before full effect is experienced.
On average, the effects of smoked cannabis will wear off within 2 to 3 hours.
A joint, which is a hand rolled cannabis cigarette, is probably the most common and convenient delivery method. Joints are portable, easy to conceal, and no other apparatus is needed besides cannabis, rolling papers and a lighter. (Though a roach clip is always nice.) The two major drawbacks are the strong and distinctive smell of burning cannabis and the volume of cannabis wasted in runs and from the joint continuing to burn between hits.
A blunt is basically a cigar containing with a mixture of tobacco and cannabis with a cigar wrap used rather than rolling papers. Blunts burn longer than joints-- they are larger so more bud can be packed into it-- perfect for sharing! But when medicating solo, blunts are easily extinguished and re-lit, allowing for a longer medicating experience. Unfortunately, the tobacco coupled with the greater volume of noxious smoke, make blunts harder on the lungs than other methods of smoking. Like a joint, they also present the problem of excessive odor.
Smoking through a pipe or better yet, through a bong is a good way to get a lung filling hit that goes straight to the blood stream. There are various advantages to both. A pipe is generally smaller, cheaper and more portable than a bong and doesn't include the risk of overturning and tainting clothes, furniture or other nearby items with malordorous spilled bong water. Some would find this a small risk considering that smoke through a bong is filtered and cooled by water prior to inhalation, allowing for a much cleaner and smoother hit.
Reduction of impurities is an important consideration. Long term inhalation of cannabis smoke is associated with the same kinds of pulmonary risks as is cigarette smoke, though it has not proven to be as carcinogenic. The tendency of some to use tobacco along with cannabis just magnifies the risk.
This list is not all inclusive. We've omitted lesser used methods of smoking such as hot-knifing that probably would not be part of a medical cannabis patients repertoire.
Each smoking method its advantages and disadvantages and responses can vary from patient to patient . The choice of which delivery method to use is an individual decision best arrived at by discussion with the doctor and patient's personal preference.
If you must smoke cannabis:

• Avoid tobacco
• Use high potency cannabis - reduces the amount of smoke needed to relieve symptoms.
• Use hash or other cannabis concentrates - also reduces the amount of smoke needed to relieve symptoms.
• Use a secondary method, such as edibles, to help with long-term relief.

Another effective means of medicating is vaporizing. This method uses an electrode to heat cannabis until it releases its active components as a non-toxic gas. Vaporization takes place at a lower temperature than combustion, the smokeless gas is then inhaled in the same way as smoke. As with smoking, vaporizing provides an immediate delivery of cannabinoids into the blood stream, the smokeless gas is inhaled in the same way as smoke. This allows a patient the same easy ability to instantly regulate dosage.
Vaporizing cannabis is much safer than smoking it. There is no flame or smoldering ash or cherry to contend with. In addition, it is a much purer delivery method. Because vaporized cannabis is not burned, it does not contain tar, carbon monoxide or any of the other harmful and carcinogenic components found in cannabis smoke. The active components of cannabis, including the cannabinoids, are quite combustible; when cannabis is smoked, many of its active components are consumed by combustion. The smoke then carries the carbon from decarboxylization and waste products from burning, along with whatever cannabinoids remain un-burned, into your lungs. But when cannabis is vaporized, the active components are preserved in the gas rather than burned away. So, while 88% of cannabis smoke is made up of non-cannabinoids, vaporized gas consists of 95% cannabinoids and 5% plant terpenoids. It can't get any purer! On top of that, vaporizingalmost eliminates the tell tale odor associated with smoking cannabis.
Some people who try vaping will continue to prefer smoking cannabis. The nature of relief provided by vaporizing can be quite different from what experienced smokers are accustomed to. One Trichome Lab's associate likened vaporizing to the effects of alcohol intoxication. Too strong! Some patients feel that smoking or eating cannabis better relieves their symptoms. This is especially true among those who suffer from nausea and lack of appetite. Smoking, it seems, better relieves nausea plus it causes the munchies!
A factor that may weigh heavily against the vaporizer is cost. The apparatus needed to vaporize cannabis can be quite pricey, especially as compared to a pack of papers or pipe. But if you suffer from pain or sleep deprivation the added effectiveness may justify the added expense.

Finally, some patients have observed  that the affects of vaporizing don't last as long as those of smoking.   Frequency may be a consideration for patients in intractable pain or others  who need long term relief.  For some of these, cannabis edibles might be the answer.
Another delivery option for cannabis patient's to consider is edibles. While smoking has a number of known risks associated with inhaling tar and carbon, there are no known long term side effects to ingesting cannabis. Edible medications have the advantage of being discreet and odorless; they provide a much stronger, longer lasting effect as well.
Commercially produced edibles come in many shapes and forms from cannabis infused butter, peanut butter and oils to candies, baked goods and drinks. Edibles can be made at home as well by using cannabis infused butter or oil in food recipes. Depending on taste preferences, one can use either straight up bud or concentrates like keif, hash or oil. Raw bud or leaf imparts the taste of vegetation and chlorophyll to food that is reminiscent of cooked spinach whereas concentrates tend to have less impact on the flavor of the food.
Cannabis laced foods are a great option for patients who need long term therapeutic coverage and who do not wish to expose themselves to the risks of frequent smoking. This might include patients with hypertension, and other cardio-vascular, or pulmonary conditions, who would be adversely affected by smoking. Patients with sleep disorders or who suffer from a great degree of pain and don't want to medicate as frequently as smoking or vaping would demand.
The effects of consumed cannabis can linger for up to 10 hours, depending upon the strength of the product and cannabinoid profile of the concentrate or plant material used. Potency can vary greatly according to product, or if home made, the strength or quality and amount of the cannabis, keif or hash used. Generally these are infused into butter or oil which is then used in preparation of whatever food is being laced.
The standard doseage for edibles is about 5-10 mg. of pure THC per portion. Since the average strain has about 10 percent THC, lets use that as a basis for estimating how much to add to a recipe. If you start out with an eighth of cannabis, that would would be 3.5 grams.
Every 1 gram of cannabis bud has 1,000mg of dry weight. If a strain has about 10% THC, ten percent of 1,000mg would be 100mg. So for cooking or baking at home, it is safe to assume that a gram of cannabis contains at least 100mg THC.. Take the amount of ground cannabis or kief, convert it to milligrams and divide it by the recipe yield to determine a per-serving dose of THC. A starting dosage for beginners is 5 milligrams per serving, the average size for many cannabis-infused edibles is 10mg THC.
Lets start with just under an eighth of cannabis. On average, three grams of ground cannabis will equal 300mg THC. To determine dosage, divide that 300 mg. by the recipe yield. An average cookie recipe usually makes about 60 cookies. So in this case your home made edible will equal 5mg per cookie.
When consumed, cannabis' active ingredients are first delivered to the stomach, they must travel through the digestive tract to eventually arrive at the liver. Within the liver, cannabinoids are converted into forms usable by the body before they are finally absorbed into the bloodstream. THC, for instance, is converted into 11-hydroxy-THC, a much more potent molecule that induces a greater, longer lasting stoned effect then delta-9-THC. This leads us to one of the drawbacks of edibles-- the onset of relief is not immediate. It takes an average of45 minutes to 2 hours for ingested cannabis to make its way through the digestive tract and into the bloodstream.
The time factor involved in edibles can present a real challenge to patients who need immediate relief. It also complicates finding the right dosage. Many patients despair that they have not taken an adequate amount when they don't experience any relief in a timely manner. A few will be tempted to take an additional dose. This is generally a bad idea! Often, the second dose hits right when the first does is at peak effect. Some patients will find such an intense and long lasting high to be too much. If you find yourself in this situation, relax and remain calm. Getting worked up about the intensity of your experience will just make things worse. There are a list of suggestions at the top of this page to help you cope with any moments of discomfort or paranoia.
Another draw back is that some patients feel nauseous after ingesting cannabis laced products. It often helps to make edibles with hash or keif rather than leaf or bud due to the taste factor. This might make edibles a poor choice for patients who already suffer from poor appetite or nausea.

A tincture is an alcohol based solution that has the active ingredients of a plant or herb extracted into it. cannabinoids dissolved into it. Tinctures are time a honored method of medication with cannabis. Prior to cannabis prohibition, almost every pharmacy in the United States dispensed cannabis tincture as medication. Tinctures are very easy to make. One need add high quality, cured bud to a jar, cover with alcohol and set it aside in a cool, dark place for a month. Gently inverting the jar once a day. At the end of the prescribed time, cover a bowl with cheese cloth and strain the solid material out while capturing the alcohol in the bowl. Squeeze the excess out of the material in the cheese cloth, strain a second time. At this point, many patients will add keif, hash or hash oil to make a stronger product. Transfer the alcohol solution into a dark glass dropper bottle and use as needed. To administer, place a few drops of the tincture under your tongue and allow it to absorb directly into your blood stream through your buccal mucosa. A therapeutic level dose taken in this manner will give almost immediate relief. Cannabis tincture can also be added to food or swallowed with juice. When swallowed, relief will be much slower in coming as it can not absorb into the bloodstream from the stomach, but rather must travel through the digestive system to the liver before entering the bloodstream. The dosage of tincture required will vary depend on several factors including the potency of the cannabis or concentrates it contains to the type and severity of pain or other condition you are treating. It is best to start with the lowest possible dose recommended on the product label and working upward from there. In the case of a homemade tincture, it is prudent to start with one or two drops to test the effects and then adjust dosage from there. Some patients may be put-off by the taste of tinctures, or by the use of alcohol to extract the cannabinoids from the raw material. But many others have found tinctures to be a perfect means of medicating. A tincture can be discreetly transported, plus there is no tell-tale smell when medicating or associated health risks, as with smoking and no caloric intake or delay of therapeutic benefit, as with eating .