As experienced cannasseurs, we’re always interested in learning more about how cannabis interacts with our bodies. In addition to sharing what we’ve learned about this incredibly complex plant, another topic we focus a lot of attention on is how to intensify your high.
So…how do you make your high…higher?
The answer, believe it or not, isn’t “smoke more.” In fact, we find there’s a definite law of diminishing returns in effect, especially if you’re imbibing cannabis specifically for its medicinal benefits. Less is very often more here, and at the very least it’ll make your stash last longer.
Instead, let’s focus on specific foods and activities you can use to intensify your high. They’re easy to find or do, and we think they might just give you a fresh new perspective on everyone’s favorite leafy green.
How to Intensify Your High with Foods
One of the simplest ways to subtly tweak your cannabis high is through ingesting specific foods or beverages in conjunction with your bud. Specific receptor cells in our bodies (the CB1 and CB2 receptors, to be precise) interact both with cannabinoids and with specific compounds found in some foods; the result is that they potentiate, or strengthen, the effects of cannabis.
Mango
Mangoes—in addition to being among the most luscious and pleasurable fruits to consume—contain high amounts of myrcene, a terpene (or essential oil) found in large quantities in most cannabis. Try consuming a mango up to 45 minutes before cannabis; chances are you’ll feel an intensified and longer-lasting high as a result.
Chocolate
Not that we really need an excuse to eat chocolate, but this will help suggest a new use for the world’s favorite sweet. Chocolate contains a natural chemical compound called anandamide; it’s also produced in the brain and strongly correlates with feelings of bliss or satiation. What’s more, chocolate contains other compounds which inhibit the breakdown of anandamide, which is typically sadly short-lived. The effect is that combining a little chocolate with your cannabis makes highs tend to be more intense and lasting. Maybe that’s why cannabis brownies are so popular.
Tea
Is it a coincidence that “tea” was once slang for cannabis? Tea contains natural antioxidant compounds called catechins. Like the cannabinoids, they bind with our bodies’ CB1 and CB2 receptors, and many have the effect of upregulating—or intensifying—our natural responses to cannabinoids.
How to Intensify Your High with Activities
This will come as no surprise to those who already enjoy the effects of cannabis on our nervous systems, but broadly speaking, activities that reduce our anxiety have the subtle but unmistakable effect of increasing our experience of being high.
It’s intuitive that less stress equals more enjoyment. But there are physiological processes at work behind the scenes, too. Stress tends to deplete and degrade the endocannabinoid system, the one responsible for maintaining those CB receptors we’re so fond of pointing out.
If you devote some of your “high time” to gentle self-improvement activities—meditation, gentle exercise, hiking or biking, yoga or massage are all excellent choices—you’ll find their natural anxiety-relieving qualities are highlighted, and quite possibly that you’ll require less cannabis to get the same desired effect. And while we’d hate to see any less of you, that’s a worthy goal when it comes to integrating cannabis into a healthy, active lifestyle.
Ready to intensify your high? Find your nearest dispensary below!
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