How and why is it used?
The different forms of cannabis are used in different ways:
Marijuana is smoked in hand-rolled cigarettes (joints), or in a pipe (a bong).
Hashish is usually added to tobacco and smoked, or baked and eaten in foods such as hash cookies.
Hash oil is usually spread on the tip or paper of a cigarette and then smoked.
Cannabis and hash can also be smoked in a vaporiser. Vaporisers heat cannabis to temperatures that release its active ingredients while minimising the toxins associated with burning.
The THC in cannabis is absorbed into the bloodstream through the walls of the lungs (if smoked), or through the walls of the stomach and intestines (if eaten). The bloodstream carries the THC to the brain, producing the “high” effects. Drugs inhaled get into the bloodstream quicker than those eaten. This means that the effects of cannabis when smoked occur more rapidly than when eaten.