Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is the main chemical compound in weed that creates a high sensation. Whether it’s used for medical or recreational reasons, it has a broad range of immediate and long-term effects on the body. Wine, beer and spirits all contain alcohol, a chemical that results from fermenting fruit or cereals such as barley and rye. While a small amount of alcohol isn’t likely to cause harm, drinking too much—either on one occasion or over an extended period of time—can take a serious toll on the individual’s health.
The Effects of Mixing Alcohol and Marijuana
It is possible to develop a dependence on marijuana, where a person experiences cravings, restlessness, mood and sleep disturbances, and irritability when they don’t use the drug. If alcohol or marijuana is negatively impacting your life and you seem unable to quit on your own, there is help available. The reason behind this is that alcohol increases the absorption of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is the main psychoactive component in cannabis. People who smoke weed after drinking alcohol often experience a stronger high. The American Heart Association recommends moderation in alcohol consumption for optimal cardiovascular health. If you do drink, talk with your doctor about the benefits and risks of consuming alcohol in moderation.
Co-use and Adolescent Brain Development
Activities like driving, using machinery, or any other activity that could endanger you or others must be avoided after consuming cannabis and alcohol. Be aware of your own limits and take care of the people you’re with if they show any signs of overconsumption. alcohol detox diet eating healthy during alcohol withdrawal If it is indeed true that cannabis slows down the body’s ability to absorb alcohol, consumers should be aware that feelings of drunkenness will also be delayed. This means that knowing how drunk you are can be more difficult to judge.
Signs of Alcohol Poisoning to Watch Out for
Because some people are stoned a lot of the time, while others may use marijuana only on weekends, the health effects become difficult to generalize. While both are intoxicants used recreationally, their legality, patterns of use and long-term effects on the body make the two drugs difficult to compare. THC increases dopamine release, and when dopamine is released, the resulting feelings of pleasure can reinforce the potentially addictive effects of the cannabinoid. Long-term heavy cannabis use, however, can blunt the body’s dopamine system. If your dopamine levels stay elevated for too long—due to constant cannabis use, for example—the dopamine system becomes dysfunctional.
Marijuana and Alcohol Are Best Enjoyed Separately
- The Association has strict policies to prevent these relationships from influencing the science content.
- Research suggests that co-use of alcohol and cannabis has synergistic effects over and above additive risk, as is evinced in the impaired driving literatures.
- Dopamine is a neurotransmitter produced by the brain that influences the experience of pleasure and rewards.
You might have heard of alpha and delta waves; gamma waves are also a type of brain wave that has a much higher frequency, i.e., from 30 to 200 Hz. The cannabis market is constantly evolving, but as gabepentin: uses dosage safety and more of 2023, THC-infused alcoholic beverages are still hard to find in most markets. That may change in the future, but for now, there are a growing number of THC-infused beverages without alcohol.
Who Is at Risk of Severe Effects from Combining Alcohol and Cannabis?
An interaction between cannabis and alcohol was observed in time spent at high speed; thus, cannabis may have diminished the propensity to increase driving speed following alcohol consumption. Generally, higher levels of consumption or an increase in consumption of one substance is related to higher levels of or an increase in use of the other substance. For example, individuals using higher levels of cannabis reported higher levels of alcohol relative to those using lower amounts of cannabis. Among college-aged drinkers, lifetime and past year use of cannabis increased as level of alcohol consumption increased [24, 25]. There is a substantial body of research examining the efficacy of pharmacotherapy and behavioral treatments for alcohol [84–88] or cannabis use disorders [78, 89–92]. To date, however, there is little research evaluating the efficacy of interventions specifically for the co-use of cannabis and alcohol.
When marijuana is baked into or added to food and then eaten, it takes time for the food to digest and for the user to start experiencing effects. This delayed onset may cause the user to consume more than intended, creating a longer, more intense high. In extreme cases of consuming edibles, people have experienced hallucinations, delusions, and other psychotic reactions. Using marijuana before drinking alcohol may make it difficult to gauge how intoxicated the user is from alcohol, potentially leading to dangerous situations like driving under the influence. Frequent consumers should be mindful of the increased risk of dependence or drug abuse if they cross-fade too often as they may find they need higher doses of THC to achieve the same effect. Frequent drinkers can also experience this same issue, with frequent cross-fading potentially leading to alcohol addiction or binge drinking.
Their combined use can cause blackouts, memory loss, and an increased likelihood of engaging in risky behaviors. Combining weed and alcohol can increase the effects of both drugs and cause adverse reactions. The combination can also lead people to engage in unusual or risky behaviors.
Depending on your personal metabolism, regularity of use, and other factors, it can take an hour or two to feel the high from a marijuana-infused drink. The feeling can also last longer or be more intense than you might expect or necessarily enjoy. It is not uncommon for drinkers to feel high for five to six hours; some report feeling its effects into the next day or experiencing a level of paranoia not typical of normal marijuana use. While that applies to THC, some people experience drowsiness and other less intense effects with CBD-only cocktail ingredients.
Take steps to get unhigh if you or somebody you’re with is feeling dizzy, nauseous, vomiting, or sweating. People can have different reactions to consuming the same amount of cannabis or alcohol. It is important to understand your personal tolerance for both substances in order to avoid adverse effects such as greening out, spins, or drunkenness.
For example, one person may have a very low tolerance for weed but be able to tolerate alcohol well. Another person might not have any issues with misusing alcohol but still find it hard to function without weed. There are countless cannabis products on the market and a number of consumption options, from vaping to edibles. Sure, research on the topic is ramping up a bit, but there’s still a lack of large, long-term studies. The appropriate level of care for treatment should be determined on an individual basis, with your doctor. If you or someone you know is struggling with alcohol or marijuana addiction, help is available.
These beliefs are reinforced by the media’s portrayal of alcohol, societal norms around drinking, and alcohol’s addictive nature. Growing up in a culture that glamorizes drinking, few of us get to form our beliefs about alcohol based on its true nature. Yet, our misguided beliefs shape our perceptions, and our perceptions fuel our desires. BCVS is one of the largest meetings in the world dedicated dealing with stomach pain after quitting alcohol lantana recovery to fundamental and translational research to improve heart health, a goal that the pandemic has only made more critical. Previous animal research by this research team found binge-drinking-related arrhythmias are induced by elevations in a stress-induced protein called JNK2. This can cause heart cells to mishandle calcium and misfire, resulting in the heart beating too fast or irregularly.
Because physical and mental impairment can be more pronounced when you combine cannabis and alcohol, it can be hard to know if someone’s symptoms are due to a marijuana green-out or excessive alcohol intake. Using alcohol or marijuana may lead to side effects and risks for the user. Mixing alcohol and marijuana together can intensify certain effects of both, leading to increased health risk and dangers over using either alone. Preclinical and experimental research can be utilized to better understand the complex relationship between the co-use of cannabis and alcohol and related consequences. Furthermore, preclinical studies show that antagonists of the cannabinoid receptors and inhibitors of the enzymatic degradation of endocannabinoids dampen both preference for and overall intake of alcohol [61, 62].
If weed does slow down the rise of blood alcohol levels, then it’s possible that it delays feelings of drunkenness. This can make it difficult for the individual to gauge how impaired they are. As a result, they may end up in a risky situation or use poor judgment, such as driving with a blood alcohol level that is far above the legal limit.
