Microdosing Marijuana: Doctors Say It’S The Best Way To Consume Pot

[Wild Bill]

Microdosing marijuana: Doctors say it’s the best way to consume pot

 

What is microdosing and why is it better?

Mike Adams, The Fresh Toast

 

There are those cannabis connoisseurs who enjoy getting super stoned at the end of a long day at the office, while others are now embracing an emerging trend called microdosing, a procedure that allows the user to moderate their mind by taking small doses throughout the day.

 

The concept of microdosing is simple: instead of consuming enough THC to join the land of catatonia, the user leans on somewhere between 3 to 10 milligrams to feel some effect without entering into a realm of laughing fits, paranoia and ravenous hunger. It is increasingly popular practice that Rolling Stone calls “Marijuana 2.0,” an idea that less is actually more when it comes to using cannabis for its therapeutic and creativity-inducing benefits.

 

However, there are some challenges involved. What is considered a low dose for some may not cut it for others. It is similar to how it would be if measuring the effectiveness of Ibuprofen on a large group of people. Some of them would find relief with 200 milligrams, while it might take others near pharmaceutical levels to cut through the pain. So, the core of this dosing principle is really just about the individual finding the perfect “micro-buzz” that allows them to feel comfortable and productive.

 

Dr. Duston Sulak, who has been working with medical marijuana patients in Maine for the past eight years, told Rolling Stone that he has developed a system to help people find their optimal microdose.

 

“Abstain from cannabis for two days. On day three, consume one milligram of THC and one milligram of CBD, preferably in a tincture or oil where they can be measured precisely,” he said. “Before consuming, ask yourself three questions, and answer on a scale of one to 10: How easy is it to breathe, how comfortable and calm does your body feel and how easy is it for you to smile authentically, to feel content and grateful?”

 

Feel nothing? Increase your dose by one milligram, the doctor says.

 

“You repeat this process over the next few days, increasing the dose by small increments,” he explained. “When you reach a point where you feel a difference after consuming, you’ve found your minimal effective dose.”

 

No matter how high of a tolerance a person has, the doctor says 48 hours of abstinence is all that is needed to hit the rest button.

 

Although microdosing may go against the grain of the old time stoner philosophy, medical experts say that finding the “minimum effective dose” is the key when treating a patient with any medication. After all, it is not advised to take other medications at intoxicating levels, so why should marijuana be treated any differently?

Edited April 30, 2017 by Wild Bill

[william7]

Thanks for sharing this! I read an article about micro-dosing sometime ago. In that article, they were talking about micro-dosing LSD, MDA and other hallucinogenic drugs. However, I don't think they mentioned cannabis.

 

My question is, does anybody know if a 1/8th tsp of kief be considered a micro-dose? Below is a pic of my 1/8th? And would this work if I put it in between my lip and gum like they chew tobacco?

 

Edited April 30, 2017 by william7

[Wild Bill]

I would think it's dependent upon the individual. Your microdose might be a megadose for someone else. The potency of the material makes a difference too.

[Kingdiamond]

Yeah kief is  pretty much exclusively  trichomes so one good hit of kief in a bowl will hit you

as hard as a entire joint .

[swamper]

I need a smaller vaporizer.

[bax]

you know why they have a "minimum effective dose" for medicine ? because all of the medicines ever created and used by humans have a toxicity rate. a dose that when consumed, causes toxic problems or death.

 

whereas no toxicity rate has been found with marijuana. even with huge huge doses.

 

furthermore, what this doctor is saying is that when you "feel" the cannabis, thats "effective".

 

except for the facts that:

1. just feeling the cannabis does not mean that its effecting what you want it to affect

and

2. the doctor has absolutely zero studies, training, information, knowledge or science of any kind to determine any dose of marijuana for any ailment.

3. nor does he have any clue about what effects or side effects there are about microdosing.

 

its a herb and healthy green. eat it as you would a salad, every day and in moderation. dont listen to quacks in labcoats. especially from quacks saying other medications arent "intoxicating". sounds like propagandist big-pharma blog writing to me.

 

 

also the salon article rehashes the rollingstone article and makes further errors from it. notably the salon article only mentions one doctor, yet the headline reads "doctors say".

 

the intoxicating line is nowhere to be found in the rollingstone article, which means its just something the salon writer came up with.

https://www.salon.com/2017/04/29/microdosing-marijuana-what-doctors-say-is-the-best-way-to-consume_partner/

http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/features/why-microdosing-is-taking-over-medical-marijuana-w477381

 

i'm glad medical advice is just given willy nilly on these "news" sites, but darn. thats weak sauce.

Edited May 4, 2017 by bax

[bax]

rolling stone quotes dr allen frankel about microdosing. but the same rules apply.

 

http://www.greenbridgemed.com/latest-thoughts-on-rectal-administration/

 

hes just another quack who doesnt know up from down either. another dr who blows with the wind. "its good!" "its bad!" "eggs are good this week" "wine is bad this week!" heh.

 

at this point, rick simpson and these cannabis doctors have the same knowledge. hahaha

[swamper]

Here's a non-quack study for you Bax. Low Dose Vaporized Cannabis Significantly Improves Neuropathic Pain

We conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study evaluating the analgesic efficacy of vaporized cannabis in subjects, the majority of whom were experiencing neuropathic pain despite traditional treatment. Thirty-nine patients with central and peripheral neuropathic pain underwent a standardized procedure for inhaling either medium dose (3.53%), low dose (1.29%), or placebo cannabis with the primary outcome being VAS pain intensity. Psychoactive side-effects, and neuropsychological performance were also evaluated. Mixed effects regression models demonstrated an analgesic response to vaporized cannabis. There was no significant difference between the two active dose groups’ results (p>0.7). The number needed to treat (NNT) to achieve 30% pain reduction was 3.2 for placebo vs. low dose, 2.9 for placebo vs. medium dose, and 25 for medium vs. low dose. As these NNT are comparable to those of traditional neuropathic pain medications, cannabis has analgesic efficacy with the low dose being, for all intents and purposes, as effective a pain reliever as the medium dose. Psychoactive effects were minimal and well-tolerated, and neuropsychological effects were of limited duration and readily reversible within 1–2 hours. Vaporized cannabis, even at low doses, may present an effective option for patients with treatment-resistant neuropathic pain.

[swamper]

I frequently take a small dose from my Arizer Air vape and wish I could load just a small amount. Does anyone have any ideas on how to decrease the size of the of the stem so I am not wasting my medication?

[mishigami bear]

I'll stick with macrodosing, thanks.

[swamper]

This thread got me to searching the interweb and I found this DynaVap  which looks perfect for regulating the size of your dosage.

[bax]

Here's a non-quack study for you Bax. Low Dose Vaporized Cannabis Significantly Improves Neuropathic Pain

hey, awesome. great, thanks!

 

i like the authors reply to a letter in the journal about their study:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4161205/

 

Of note, we were particularly interested in whether lower doses would result in effective pain relief, with the aim of determining if lower levels of adverse effects could also be achieved. Although it's true that in the end we could not precisely control the amount of cannabis inhaled by each participant, it is perhaps not critical in this method of administration, because ultimately self-titration may be the preferred approach, as not all individuals metabolize all medications similarly.

looks kinda like what i said earlier!

 

We do not have data directly assessing the daily functioning impact of this dosage of cannabis; certainly, this could be an important aim for future research involving studies weeks in duration.

thats exactly what i said earlier.

 

 

hey if microdosing works go for it. if macrodosing works, go for it.

 

the point i was getting at earlier was just because someone is a doctor, does not mean they have expert knowledge on the subject of cannabis. i would be wary of anyone telling me dosage rates for ailments, because no one has that data yet. and its different for everyone. and each plant is different.

 

i guess my point was not really needed. i just dont like doctors or anyone pretending to be experts on the subject. its funny all of the research we have and the only answer we get is "its good for this disease or treatment" , dosage, frequency, amounts... its almost all anecdotal data (which is good enough for me at this point).

 

i remembered my point, it was for people who were using cannabis to treat tumors or cancer or other non-pain related things. for pain, it would be a great idea to use the least amount of cannabis to treat your pain. because your cannabis stockpile will last longer and using less means less money.

 

but for cancer, theres no research or study to show that small amounts will be able to help shrink tumors. not that theres research or study to show the inverse, either. almost all anecdotal for in vivo right now.

 

there are other studies on daily dosing marijuana of course, and anecdotal stories saying dosing every day helps keep cancer at bay. which is pretty much true of eating any plant daily at this point.

 

heres the mice study from 2005 saying a daily dose of 1mg/kg thc clears up Atherosclerosis, which is a leading cause of heart disease.

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v434/n7034/full/nature03389.html

 

so remember, eat those buds! get your daily dose, keep that heart clean!

Edited May 5, 2017 by bax

[33451Bruce]

This thread got me to searching the interweb and I found this DynaVap  which looks perfect for regulating the size of your dosage.

 

Just make sure it's for material and not oils. I had one I tossed that was for plant material. The problem was you had to grind the material very, very fine. They used a special grinder. And it was too small for more than 3 or 4 hits without getting clogged up. It was the older model of this one:

 

http://www.vaporplants.com/snoop-dogg-g-pen-or-micro-g-vape-pen-for-dry-herb

[swamper]

Just make sure it's for material and not oils. I had one I tossed that was for plant material. The problem was you had to grind the material very, very fine. They used a special grinder. And it was too small for more than 3 or 4 hits without getting clogged up. It was the older model of this one:

 

http://www.vaporplants.com/snoop-dogg-g-pen-or-micro-g-vape-pen-for-dry-herb

 

This one's for flower, and I am really diggiin it! They have one that will work with juice also, if that's your thing.