The Eight Most Common Myths About Edibles Busted
With legalization sweeping across the country, more Americans are trying cannabis for the first time. Edibles are a popular choice for first-timers, thanks to their health benefits and delicious taste.
Edibles are one of the safest, most straightforward ways to consume cannabis, but it’s essential to get your facts straight before indulging. The High Notes guide is here to help you separate fact from fiction so that you can enjoy every edible experience.
MYTH #1:
Making edibles is as simple as sprinkling ground-up flower over a cupcake.
REALITY:
You can’t eat raw weed and get high. First, you need to convert the non-psychoactive THCA into the psychoactive THC.
The A in THCA stands for acid. Decarboxylation removes acid from the compound and creates THC. When you’re making edibles at home, you can do this by simmering the ground flower in your fat of choice, creating cannabis-infused oil or cannabutter for cooking (but why make homemade edibles when you have High Notes?).
MYTH #2:
If you don’t feel anything after your first nibble, you should keep eating until you do.
REALITY:
You should wait at least six hours after you’ve eaten your first dose before consuming more. Compared to smoking or vaping cannabis, it takes a lot longer for edibles to kick in. It can take between 30 minutes and two hours to feel edibles effects, and the peak effects can last for six hours. Remember the golden rule: start low and go slow.
MYTH #3:
You should eat an entire edible for the best results.
REALITY:
You shouldn’t eat more of an edible than you can handle.
Different brands and varieties of edibles contain differing amounts of THC. For example, all of our High Notes cannabis chews have 50 mg of THC. If you’re indulging in edibles for the first time, this would be way too much in one go. First-timers should start with 1 mg to 2.5 mg, so you just need to bite off a corner.
MYTH #4:
You can die from consuming too much of an edible.
REALITY:
No one has died from consuming too much cannabis.
Nevertheless, whether you’re eating an edible or smoking a joint, you can get uncomfortably high if you consume too much. Fortunately, this feeling passes with time. Just find a safe, comfortable place to wind down, and consider taking a refreshing nap.
MYTH #5:
“Double strength” edibles are the most potent.
REALITY:
“Double strength” doesn’t mean anything unless you know what strength is doubled.
Some companies might label their products with catchy slogans like “high strength,” but you should focus on what THC content is listed for dosage.
MYTH #6:
Edibles aren’t as effective as smoking cannabis.
REALITY:
Milligram for milligram, the THC in edibles will get you higher than smoking flower or concentrates.
When you ingest cannabis, the THC is converted by the liver into 11-OH-THC. 11-OH-THC moves across the blood-brain barrier more easily than THC, so the effects of consuming 1 mg of THC are equivalent to smoking 5.71 mg of THC.
MYTH #7:
Edibles will put you to sleep every time you eat them.
REALITY:
You can adjust your dosage, so you can enjoy your High Notes experience in almost any way you want.
Consuming a high quantity of edibles will most likely have a sedative effect, making cannabis-infused treats suitable for treating insomnia. However, a smaller dose can often have the opposite effect, making you feel energized, focused, and creative.
MYTH #8:
All commercially produced edibles are created equal.
REALITY:
Edibles can vary widely in the quality of their ingredients and the stringency of the manufacturing processes used.
For instance, some brands manufacture edibles using butane hash oil, giving a harsh taste and adding harmful chemicals. High Notes cannabis chews, on the other hand, are produced using all-natural cannabis oil. Our chews are thoroughly lab-tested too, which means you can be confident in getting the dosage right.
And since taste is an essential part of the edible experience, our cannabis chews come in three delicious flavors – Dark Chocolate, Strawberry Cream, and Thai Iced Tea. Sounds much better than ground-up flower, right?
The High Notes Guide to Enjoying Cannabis Edibles
With a dash of know-how and a generous helping of patience, edibles might be the easiest, safest way to consume cannabis. Here’s our guide to enjoying High Notes cannabis chews.
Flower and edibles – what’s the difference?
When you smoke cannabis flower or concentrates, THC, the compound that gets you high, is absorbed through your lungs directly into the bloodstream, so you’ll feel the effects within minutes.
Edibles, on the other hand, can take a lot longer to kick in – from 30 minutes, all the way up to two hours. When you eat an edible, it takes more time for the THC to reach the bloodstream. It moves from the gut and onto the liver, where it’s metabolized into 11-hydroxytetrahydrocannabinol or 11-OH-THC.
Stronger and longer-lasting.
Milligram for milligram, 11-OH-THC is more potent than regular THC, and the effects last for longer.
11-OH-THC passes the blood-brain barrier much more readily than regular THC. As a result, the effects of ingesting 1 mg of THC are equivalent to smoking 5.71 mg of THC.
As for longevity, while the effects of smoking cannabis last for three to four hours, the peak high from eating edibles can last for two to six hours, and you can still feel the aftereffects for up to 12 hours after eating.
The exact duration of your high depends on factors like body weight, THC tolerance, how much of the edible you eat, and how much other food you’ve eaten. These variables can also affect your high intensity.
What if I get too high?
We’ve all heard the story. The edible newbie takes a bite of a brownie, feels nothing … has another nibble, sober as can be … eats a bit more, and so on … until finally, three hours later, they’re wondering if they’ll ever be able to stand up from the couch again.
This doesn’t have to happen to you. With a little patience, you can get just as high as you want to.
Take it easy.
Remember the golden rule when it comes to edibles: Start low, go slow.
If you’re a first-timer, begin with 1 to 2.5 mg of THC. You’ll probably feel a nice warm buzz, with increased focus and creativity, and mild relief of pain, stress, and other symptoms.
Next, take a seat, put on your favorite movie, and wait. Remember, the peak effects of edibles can last for two to six hours, so wait for at least this long before eating any more.
When you’ve built up some experience with edibles, you can begin to experiment with higher doses. Make sure you build up slowly, though – don’t increase your quantity by more than five milligrams each time.
2.5 mg to 15 mg of THC will bring euphoria, more substantial pain and stress relief, and impaired coordination and perception. 15 – 50 mg is best suited for those with a high THC tolerance, ushering in some intense euphoria and significantly impaired coordination. 50 mg or more? Prepare for takeoff – and give us a wave from space!
Our High Notes cannabis chews come with a single 50 mg THC piece per package, but that doesn’t mean you have to pack a space suit for every time you feel like indulging. Finding the right dose is easy – bite off a corner and enjoy the ride.
What if I do over consume?
Try not to worry. Many of us have been there.
First of all, talk yourself down, and remind yourself that the feeling will pass. “You are not going to stop breathing, and you are not going to die,” says Dr. Bonni Goldstein, a physician specializing in cannabis medicine. “Try to take your mind off it. Watch television for the distraction, or lie down and take a nap.”
When you do nod off eventually, you’ll probably wake up feeling more refreshed than you have in a while. That’s one of the beauties of edibles, like our High Notes cannabis chews. Because the effects last for longer, cannabis-infused foods are perfect for falling and staying asleep.
Perfect for many occasions.
But that’s not all our cannabis chews are perfect for. Infused with all-natural, Oregon-made cannabis oil, High Notes cannabis chews are an ideal complement to a wholesome Saturday brunch or your midweek wind down. Available in three delicious flavors, Dark Chocolate, Strawberry Cream, and Thai Iced Tea, every chew is perfectly dosed and reasonably priced.
Just remember the golden rule when you indulge in our cannabis chews: Start low, go slow, and enjoy the ride!