We all like to have fun, and from time to time to drink a couple (or more) of shots and beers with friends. People who use medicinal cannabis are no exception. Such combination is also rather common in recreational weed use, too. What do we need to know about the interactions of liquor and main cannabis constituents? Do they co-work or produce adverse effects? We’ll try to answer your questions in this article.
Cannabidiol is a bioactive substance that is found in marijuana. It’s effects on the human body have been widely known from ancient times, but only the 20th century gave the scientific background for them. CBD interacts with cannabinoid receptors and through a complicated chain of reactions produces numerous healing effects:
CBD is not the only one active substance found in the cannabis plants, it is accompanied by tetrahydrocannabinol. While CBD is mostly used for medicinal purposes, this marijuana compound finds great favor among recreational cannabis lovers due to its mind-altering effects.
CBD does not affect your thinking and perception, which makes it ideal for the pharmaceutical and beauty industries. They extract it from the cannabis plant and sell in various forms:
Many fancy brands of beer and other liquors also contain some cannabis. Moreover, marijuana dispensaries will offer you numerous modern strains of weed that contain next to zero amount of THC.
Unfortunately, both medicinal and recreational use of cannabis is still not completely legalized, thus, we still don’t have enough scientific evidence on how it works and its interactions with other substances. Though some studies show that mixing spirits and weed is not dangerous, we cannot say it for sure, as it was not proven by the valid research.
We know that separately alcohol and CBD have a relaxing effect. Thus, it’s safe to assume that when combined they intensify each other’s performance in the body. There were some clinical studies made in the 20th and 21st century, and partially they confirmed this theory.
In 1979, there was an article in Psychopharmacology describing one experiment made on humans. They were given CBD, alone and with spirits. Along with other effects of this co-consumption, the scientists found out that prior CBD intake does not change the level of alcohol in the blood.
Another study from the 1970s shows evidence that marijuana taken together with alcohol may aggravate such ethanol’s effects as motor skills impairments, inhibition of psychomotor performance, alteration of thinking and perception of time, loss of coordination, etc. Interesting fact is that examinees felt these amplified effects when they took alcohol with CBD, the same but weaker feelings were observed when they were given ethanol alone, but CBD alone did not produce any of them.
This study also showed that when you use CBD together with booze, it might lower the ethanol blood concentration. Which means that CBD may be helpful in mitigating the side effects of the alcohol overdose. At the same time, this combination leads to the enhanced feeling of drowsiness and relaxation, which is not always good. Yet, that trial used the excessive doses of CBD, so the information is not applicable to normal cannabis consumption.
Beneficial health effects of the CBD plus ethanol co-intake are not well studied. There are several trials available, some prove that cannabidiol protects the brain from the alcohol-induced damage, others claim that it prevents liver ailments caused by liquor. Yet, these studies are all animal-based, and there is no evidence if the same effects will be observed in humans.
Lots of efforts are now being made on studying the curative effects of CBD for people who suffer from alcohol addiction. Human trials are too few, but the experiments on rodents give a hope that cannabis may become panacea for people who abuse alcohol and other substances. Again, we do not know if it also goes for humans.
Lots of people believe that marijuana helps with severe hangovers. There is no clinical evidence for this, however, medical science knows for sure that CBD reduces pain, treats nausea, and combats depression and anxiety. All these, like many others also cured by CBD, are the hangover-associated symptoms. Thus, smoking CBD-high weed can really help you in the morning after a nice party.
Experienced marijuana users know that cannabis does not affect all of us in the same way. It all depends on our physical and mental health, genes, current mood, etc. This is why the decision if you want to drink alcohol together with cannabis is only up to you, every time you make it.
The only sage advice about it is to combine these two wisely and with caution. Start with lower doses and watch your body’s reaction. Increase the intake slowly, and stop immediately if you feel bad. This way you’ll stay on the safe side. And remember, that using marijuana, you also consume some amounts of THC, which is a completely different story.
© Dr-Weedy.com, 2021
