Cannabis Overview Flashcards
About _____ million U.S. citizens report smoking cannabis daily or almost daily.
3.5
___ million report smoking the drug at least once a month
14.5
More than ___ million have tried it at least once in their lives
100
About ___% of the U.S. population has experienced cannabis related effects at some point in their lives
50
Subjective Effects: Definition
Subjectively experienced changes in one’s physiological and/or psychological state following drug administration
Example of Subjective Effects
- Michigan Police Officer Incident (2006)
- Andrew Weil (The Natural Mind-1972)
- Howard Becker (Outsiders 1963)
- The sequence of learning to use cannabis
- Learn to smoke it
- Learn to notice the effects
- Learn to enjoy the effects
Two Important Factors of Subjective Effects
1) . The route of administration
2) . The individual’s cannabis use history
Euphoria
“High”, “Good drug effect” “Stoned”, “Stimulated”, “Mellow”
Physiological States
Increased reports of “hungry” and “dry mouthed” following use
Route of Administration
1) . Smoked (or vaporized) cannabis
2) . Oral Cannabis (edibles, drinkables)
Smoked (or Vaporized) Cannabis
a) . THC is absorbed rapidly by the blood & travels to the brain and then the rest of the body
b) . Within 30 minutes, most THC is gone from the brain
c) . Peak psychological & cardiovascular effects occur together within 5-10 minutes
Oral Cannabis (Edibles, Drinkables)
a) . THC is absorbed more slowly & the liver transforms it into 11-hydroxy-delta-9-THC
b) . Less THC reaches the brain
c) . Peak effects occur between 30-90 minutes following ingestion- depending on stomach contents, especially fat
Negative subjective effects are most commonly associated with:
Infrequent cannabis users
Early/Ancient History
- Had many uses as a food, for its fibers, and as a medicine in the ancient world
- Earliest use as a sacrament
- Used for religious purposes 3000 years before Christ
Ancient Mideast History
- Believed that cannabis was brought to Mideast by the Scythians (Used as homage for departed leaders)
- Cannabis was used medicinally in ancient Mesopotamia
- References to hemp as incense and as intoxicant in Hebrew text of the Old Testament
Primary reason for cultivation
Psychoactive constituents known as ‘cannabinoids’
How many species are there?
- 3 species plus C.chinensis (subset of C.indica)
- C.sativa, C.indica, and C.ruderalis
Dioecious
Male and female reproductive organs on separate plants
Cannabis is a rapidly growing ____ wind pollinated annual that can reach up to __ feet tall.
dioecious; 20
Plants may grow up to __ inches per day
2
Photoperiodcity
The shift from vegetative to generative growth is brought on by exposure to shorter daylight periods
Generative
Reproductive, flower-producing
During _____ growth, male and female plants can’t be readily distinguished
vegetative
_______ are the primary source of cannabinoids
Unfertilized flower heads (colas)
_____ are found in enclosed small glandular trichomes
Cannabinoids
Once fertilized w/ pollen from the males, female plants produce seeds over ____ days
14-35
Plants used for __________ produce only small quantities of cannabinoids
fiber production
Plants grown for medicinal or recreational products are usually exclusively _____
female
_____ plants are removed to avoid accidental pollination and subsequent seed development
Male
Marijuana
The dried, cured non seeded (hence sinsemilla) flowers
Hashish
Resin collected directly from trichomes
4 Waves of Breeding
- Ed Rosenthal “Big Book of Buds”
1) . ‘Old school’ adaptation of landraces involving pure varieties or simple crosses (eg: Afghan-Mexican)
2) . Hybridization of varieties
3) . More hybridization, this time focusing on flavors, tastes, and aromas
4) . Even more hybridization but focused on connoisseur highs from plants tweaked to produce different percentages of THC, CBD, and other cannabinoids
Hybridization of varieties w/goals of:
- Increasing potency
- Increasing yield
- Decreasing flowering time
