How is marijuana used?

There are a variety of ways of using marijuana which include:

• Smoking
• Chewing
• Brewing
• Cooking

Smoking

This is the most popular way of using marijuana.

The leaves and flowers of the marijuana plant are dried and chopped so that they resemble a portion of commercially available dried herbs. They are then added to tobacco and smoked as a ‘joint’ or ‘spliff’.

Another option is smoking a joint which contains marijuana and nothing else.

Marijuana resin is scraped from the plant and then pressed into brown or black blocks. Shavings of these are added to tobacco and smoked as a cigarette or via a special pipe called a ‘bong’.

Chewing

This is more popular in countries in the Middle East and Asia. The resin is chewed instead of being smoked and is done so for its calming effect.

Brewing

This refers to the option of infusing leaves of the marijuana plant in hot water which is then drunk as a form of tea. This causes mild effects compared to other methods of using marijuana which is due to the fact that tetrahydrocannabinols (THC’s) are not water soluble.

This means that there is likely to be little of the mild altering effects that you expect to experience with marijuana. It is not a very way of achieving a ‘high’ but it is often preferred for medicinal reasons.

Cooking

Some people prefer to consume marijuana in the form of a ‘cake’or other food product rather than smoking. Doing so means that you are still able to experience the mood enhancing effects of tetrahydrocannabinols (THC’s) but without the risks of smoking.

A ‘hash cake’or ‘cookie’ is considered to have a stronger effect than smoking or ingesting marijuana as a form of tea. These effects take longer to appear but when they do they tend to more intense and longer lasting.

Hash cakes are often known for their strong hallucinogenic qualities.

Marijuana gives off a distinctive sweetish aroma when smoked in a cigarette or a bong.