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The growth of popularity of THC pills looks set to skyrocket until the next decade. The advantages of THC Pills address the downsides of other types of cannabis products. For example, fans are confident they know what dose of THC they’re taking and that it’s easy to swallow, anywhere. While compared to edibles, they have no sugar and very few calories.
How do THC Pills work?
Once swallowed, THC pills or capsules soon arrive in the stomach where the capsule casing quickly dissolves. The contents, either the coconut oil and THC or the ground cannabis powder release and dissolve into the gastric juices. This process is faster than other edible products because there are so few ingredients in a THC pill.
Once released, the THC travels across the stomach lining into the bloodstream, where it travels to the liver. After further metabolism, the THC returns to the bloodstream, where it continues around the circulatory system, arriving at different receptors of the endocannabinoid system, such as CB1 and CB2.
How do you make THC pills?
While it’s convenient to buy THC capsules online or from a retail store, you will pay a higher price for this convenience, and you can’t personalize the dosage. However, using some simple equipment, ingredients, and a regular domestic kitchen, you can make THC capsules much cheaper and just how you like them.
Equipment and Ingredients
- A half ounce of cannabis.
- A spice grinder or food processor
- Parchment paper
- A baking tray
- Coconut oil
- Soy or sunflower lecithin
- A slow cooker
- A glass bowl
- A straining cloth or fine strainer
- Gelatin capsules (or cellulose capsules for vegetarians and vegans)
- A small syringe or eyedropper.
- The first step in creating THC capsules involves decarboxylating the cannabis. This process involves transforming the cannabinoid acids (THCA and CBDA) present into THC and CBD cannabinoids, which create the desired effects in the body. Heat is required in the conversion process using a home oven. Grind the cannabis in the spice grinder until it is just broken up rather than a fine powder. Line a clean baking tray with parchment paper and sprinkle on the cannabis, using your fingers to spread it out into a thin, even layer. Heat the oven to 105° C, put the tray in the oven, and allow it to heat for one hour. Ovens vary, so keep an eye on it – it should be light brown at the end of the time. This process may create a strong cannabis smell, so use ventilation if necessary.
- Heat your slow cooker to 100° C. Add 60 ml of coconut oil and sprinkle on a quarter teaspoon of soy lecithin. Mix the two together with a spoon, and after a few minutes, they will combine. The soy lecithin helps to emulsify the ingredients to keep the mixture uniform.
- Transfer the cannabis from the baking tray into the spice grinder and grind it to a fine powder. Add the ground cannabis to the slow cooker and stir to combine it with the coconut oil. Leave the mixture to cook for three hours, stirring occasionally. This will enable the active ingredients in the cannabis to transfer into the coconut oil. After three hours, allow to cool slightly.
- If you are using a glass bowl, place a straining cloth over the top and secure it in place with a rubber band. Alternatively, place the strainer over the bowl.
- Pour the mixture from the slow cooker onto the straining cloth carefully. Remove the rubber band and pull up the sides of the straining cloth so you have a ball of oil and cannabis in the bottom. You can either twist the ball around with your hand or squeeze it to extract the oil, which you can collect in the glass bowl. When all the oil is extracted, the straining cloth and remaining cannabis can be discarded.
- Prepare the capsules by pulling them apart, ready for filling, and keep the two halves separate. Suck up the cannabis oil mixture into the syringe and fill the bottom half of a capsule with the required amount of oil. Slide the capsule lid on so it is sealed.
- The filled capsules are best stored in the refrigerator, so they remain effective for longer. The cold may make the coconut oil solidify, but it returns to a liquid at room temperature.
When making THC capsules, some people prefer to adjust the amount of oil in each capsule so they can test the effects of different doses. Then it is possible to fill the remaining capsules with the optimum quantity of oil.
Do THC pills smell?
Both gelatin and cellulose capsules have a rigid construction, so when the two halves are pushed together, they create a good seal. Capsules filled with prepared cannabis oil are unlikely to give off any odor of cannabis, but it’s not a good idea to test this out by taking the capsules through customs. Filling the capsules with ground cannabis plant material, creates more possibility of a slight odor.
Can doctors prescribe THC pills?
No. In the US doctors can only recommend the use of cannabis products for certain medical conditions and while this is legal in many States, it is not the case for all. Medical marijuana products are not FDA-approved and they are consequently still illegal under federal law.
There are just four cannabinoid drugs that are available for prescription in the US.
Marketed under the names Marinol, Syndros, Cesamet, and Epidiolex, their primary use is for controlling nausea in patients undergoing chemotherapy.
Can dogs smell THC pills?
The customs departments of many countries often use working dogs. A dog’s sense of smell is almost 40 times more acute than the human sense of smell, which gives them the ability to pick up their owner’s scent from more than 12 miles away, depending on the wind direction.
Training enables a dog to pick up the scent of many different types of contraband, including narcotics. Even if THC capsules are stored in a bottle, inside a piece of luggage, it is more than likely a dog will be able to still pick up the scent of the cannabis.
Can you snort THC pills?
Nasal THC sprays are a popular method of ingesting THC products. The spray creates a very fine aerosol of propellant and THC, and the size of the molecules is small enough to be absorbed through the nasal membrane into the bloodstream.
However, snorting a THC capsule composed of cannabis plant matter is unlikely to create any of the desired effects. Even if the contents are carboxylated and ground to a powder, it is unlikely any of the contained THC will be able to cross the nasal membrane. Snorting ground plant material is bound to be unpleasant and may even cause damage to the nasal membranes.
Do THC pills get you high?
Using THC pills or capsules is a growing trend in the US, accounting for approximately 16% of the cannabis market. Their convenience and controllable dosing are two of the most popular selling points.
The THC contained in the plant material is activated by carboxylation. This is a process of gently roasting the cannabis for about an hour to convert the potential THC into its activated form. People who take a THC pill experience different effects depending on many factors such as their metabolism, their weight, how often they take cannabis products, and when they last ate, among others.
Typical physical effects of taking a THC capsule include increased heart rate, dry mouth, bloodshot eyes, and slower reaction times. The high or psychoactive effects typically include changes in perception, as well as changes in mood and behavior, such as hilarity. Depending on the person’s personality, sometimes unwanted effects such as paranoia and anxiety can diminish the experience.
Do THC pills work?
The popularity of THC pills is not in doubt and research by Data Bridge Market Research demonstrated that the cannabis capsule market, which was USD 28 billion in 2021, would increase to USD 108.14 billion by 2029.
The factors responsible for this growth are the advancing legalization of cannabis products both in the pharmaceutical and recreational markets. Additionally, there is a broadening awareness among customers of the wellness advantages of cannabis.
For many cannabis customers, being able to control the dose of their intake ranks highly. Anxieties about being out of control can be off-putting to many. Using THC pills is a formula to take back control, where there is better management of the doses.
How long do THC pills take to kick in?
The effects of THC on the human body take different times to kick in depending on the method of ingestion. The fastest way to experience the effects is by vaping or smoking, where the cannabis is distributed in the smoke or the aerosol from vaping. By drawing the smoke or vapor into the lungs, the THC molecules can cross the lung membrane into the bloodstream.
However, one of the slowest methods of ingesting cannabis is via the digestive system. A THC pill or capsule needs to be swallowed before arriving in the stomach. The stomach contents and enzymes will normally dissolve the gelatin shell of the THC capsule in about 30 minutes, releasing the THC molecules inside.
Once absorbed into the stomach contents, the THC is transported across the stomach lining into the bloodstream. However, a different route to smoking or vaping takes the THC to the liver, where it is further metabolized before being released back into the bloodstream. The THC is transported by the bloodstream to the various receptors of the endocannabinoid system, where the different physical and psychoactive effects are initiated.
So, the active ingredients in THC capsules take a complicated route through the body before resulting in any effect. After counting the 30 minutes that the capsules take to dissolve in the stomach, the THC will still take anything between 45 mins to 2 hours to take effect. If taken on a full stomach, it may take even longer.
How long do THC pills last?
THC capsules tend to take longer to kick in but at the same time have effects that last longer than other methods of ingestion. For an average dose of THC, the psychoactive effects might last for 3 to 8 hours. This period is dependent on the dose of THC, your natural metabolism, and your tolerance.
Some people naturally have more efficient metabolisms and so their liver enzymes are better at metabolizing the THC and removing it from the body. Regular cannabis takers will build up a tolerance to THC. Their bodies will produce more of the liver enzymes that remove it and so they need to take more and more THC to achieve the same high.
What do THC pills look like?
When THC pills made from clear gelatin capsules, then it’s possible to see the coconut oil and THC inside. If the THC capsules are made with the ground cannabis plant, then it is visible inside as a light brown powder.
