Live resin edibles: benefits and pitfalls

People use medical cannabis in different ways. Some vape, some smoke and others use edibles. Live resin edibles are now available in the market. What are these edibles? What are their effects on the body?

Live resin edibles

Live resin is produced from Cannabis plant but in this, the plant part is first flash frozen before the extraction process. This ensures that the yield contains higher amounts of terpene content for more action.

The end product is fresher, stronger and higher in quality. It has more flavor too. And when this is infused into edibles, it is live resin edibles. These products are true to plant and have high aromas and flavor. Eating them implies that the absorption would be from the gut and not the lungs. People who use cannabis are worried about its ill effects on the lungs and hence opt for these edibles. It does not cause any damage to the respiratory system.

Action details

The live resin edibles are more concentrated and potent. That implies, they will produce the desired action with smaller amount of it. Moreover, it is a more fresher feel with the resin edibles. Because the flash freezing protects it’s flavor and aroma. Both of these are lost with processing of the plant products.

The action of these edibles is not instantaneous. It might take 30 minutes to one hour to show results. But the action lasts longer. It might remain for as long as five hours. Also, the effect is more severe due to high potency. The high achieved with the edibles are more. Anxiety and psychosis effects are more severe and strong.

Downsides of edibles

The process of making them is highly skilled and only professionals can do it. One cannot make them at home in the kitchen. Additionally, because the process of making them requires more expertise and equipment as well as time, the edibles are more expensive compared to their smoked counterparts.

Furthermore, the effects are more severe. Many edible users end up in emergency rooms for treatment after consuming the edibles. These marijuana-laced products come as gummy bears, cookies or brownies. But they have more complications. Neuroscientist Nora Volkow from the National Institute on Drug Abuse at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md. says:

“These are being associated with medical complications that we never knew were associated with marijuana,”

A study in Annals of Internal Medicine in March 2019 showed that out of 2,567 marijuana-linked emergency visits to the hospital, only 9% were due to edibles. But 18% of these had severe symptoms compared to 11% of marijuana smokers.

Also, read Cannabis edibles sold online illegally in the UK!

The former also had more heart issues (8% vs 3.1% respectively). But marijuana smokers had more gastrointestinal symptoms. The lead study author, Andrew Monte at the University of Colorado Hospital wants US FDA to have standardizing guidelines. He expects them to issue health warnings on how the different ways of use of marijuana can affect a person differently.