Delta-9 and Alcohol

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Alcohol and cannabis have been around for millennia and at some point (millennia ago) someone had the idea to mix the two.

We’ll be honest, we’ve thought about it ourselves. Because if you like getting a buzz from cannabis and buzz from an alcoholic drink, well, if you mix the two, isn’t it more fun doubling up?

Sure, mixing Delta-9 with alcohol might feel good for some people, but there are things everyone should know about combining these two substances. For the uneducated, we’ll begin by saying Delta-9 refers to THC, specifically Delta-9 THC, or really what you might be more familiar with as just plain Jay-toocee.

We’re taking time to make the distinction because, per the Controlled Substances Act, Delta-9 THC is not federally legal, but cannabinoids from hemp plants under 0.3 per cent THC (such as Delta-8 THC) is of a legal status that’s neither legal nor illegal, which means many other forms of THC are technically federally legal, or at least they’re not federally illegal.

At the state level, however, a few have legalised all or most THC (including Delta-9) for medicinal and recreational use. And because it has been increasingly easy to access good old smokable weed in states that have legalised it, more people are combining weed and alcohol today than ever before.

Alcohol has been around awhile and is now legal. But if weed is getting there (those of us who live in legal states are getting really close), and people are understandably atwitter, or even antsy to try all the new things.

What happens when you mix Delta-9 THC and alcohol? What will you feel? Is Delta 9 THC safe? Let’s find out.

Key Takeaways:

• Moderation and Sequence Matter: Consuming cannabis before alcohol may delay alcohol's effects, potentially leading to overconsumption of alcohol. Conversely, drinking before consuming cannabis can result in higher and more prolonged THC levels in the bloodstream, intensifying the high.
• Potent Combination with Edibles: Mixing alcohol with cannabis edibles can lead to significantly stronger and longer-lasting effects due to increased absorption of THC and its conversion to the more potent 11-hydroxy-THC by the liver. This combination heightens the risk of adverse effects.
• Be Mindful of Risks: While combining a small amount of alcohol with cannabis may not be immediately dangerous, excessive consumption can impair judgment, reduce cognitive function, and increase the risk of dependency and mental health issues. It's crucial to consume both substances responsibly and be aware of their combined effects. 

Alcohol and Weed: What Happens When You Mix?

There are a few things that you need to know about what happens when you mix alcohol and weed, so let’s start with how your body processes the two.

Weed Before Alcohol vs. Alcohol Before Weed

If you consume weed before alcohol, it may slow down the uptake of the alcohol in your body. This makes you take longer to feel drunk, which may seem like a good thing. But if it takes you longer to feel drunk, you are likely to drink more, thereby running the risk of overconsuming alcohol.

If you consume alcohol before weed, the story is fairly similar. The liver metabolizes alcohol before everything else, so your liver is going to immediately start processing it. It won’t try to process anything else until the alcohol is gone.

So, if you smoke or vape weed, which gets absorbed into the blood through the lungs, that THC is going to stay in your blood at peak levels until the liver has finished metabolizing the alcohol.

In other words, drinking alcohol before consuming weed results in higher peak THC levels in the blood for longer periods, quite simply because THC has nowhere to go until the alcohol has been metabolized.

It Can Make the High Stronger and Longer

Obviously, it seems like pre-sobriety drinking is a much more meaningful order of operations than pre-sobriety smoking. Smoke before you drink, and you’ll have to wait a while before your drunkenness seems to catch up with how much booze you put into your bloodstream.

But if you’ve already downed a beer before a joint or blunt, that high lasts much longer, and is much stronger, for the entire time. That THC stays in the bloodstream with nowhere to go but on into circulation, where it runs the full gamut of your system. Because alcohol remains in the liver, you suffer the maximum effect from each milligram of THC in your bloodstream until that THC is bloodstream-cleansed by the liver.

So, if you like to get really high for a really long time and want the most proverbial ‘bang for your buck’ out of your bud, pair it with a couple of beers for starters.

It Can Lead to Nasty Side effects (Greening Out).

If you aren’t used to having high levels of THC in your system and you aren’t acclimated to being high, you might experience other side effects, like paranoia and nervousness.

But if you’ve had too much of both – especially if the weed trailed the booze and you got absolutely obliterated – you’re likely to green out. Greening out is the official name for what it’s like to be too high and have too much THC in your system.

Greening out refers to feeling nauseous, hot, sweaty, dizzy, vomiting, headaches and other symptoms. The more you continue to smoke with alcohol in your system, the more of that THC has no place to go, and it will likely lead to you greening out which will not kill you, but you will not like it.

It Can Lead to You Consuming More of Both

Whether we are talking about consuming weed before alcohol or alcohol before weed, mixing the two can result in you consuming more of one or both, which in itself can have some serious consequences, both in the short and long term.

Delta-9 Gummies and Alcohol

Consuming edibles together with weed, such as Delta-9 gummies, is a whole different story. As you probably know, edibles generally result in the strongest and the longest-lasting high. First, alcohol is shown to widen the blood vessels in your digestive tract, which means you absorb larger quantities of substances, including THC.

So, if you drink, your body absorbs more THC from the edibles much faster, making you super high. However, there is more to it than that. When you consume THC in the form of edibles, your liver converts THC to 11-hydroxy-THC, which is about nine times stronger than regular THC, which is why edibles produce such a strong high.

Now, since your body isn’t processing the THC until the alcohol has been metabolized, this results in massive peak THC levels in your blood, or 11-hydroxy-THC. Simply put, mixing alcohol with edibles creates the strongest and longest-lasting highs you have ever felt. This also increases the risk of negative side effects.

To be safe, consume both in moderation. With Delta 9 drinks, edibles, and vaping, small quantities will do just fine. While it is considered virtually impossible to overdose on cannabinoids, it is possible to overdose on alcohol.

Is it Safe to Vape Delta-9 Just After Drinking Beer?

Alright. Maybe a couple of hits of Delta-9 THC on top of the beer wouldn’t kill you. And it certainly isn’t the same as swapping out one beer for a bottle of vodka. A single beer doesn’t put your liver under too much stress, so processing the alcohol shouldn’t take it that long, and a hit or two off a vape won’t shove all that much THC into your system anyway, so this should be perfectly fine.

A lot of what I’m talking about is about numbers. A beer isn’t a bottle of vodka and a couple of hits off your vape isn’t vaping the full two-gram cartridge.

But, if you find yourself using either too much will all the other considerations, then the risks, or side effects, can be dangerous. The right set of circumstances could add up to a whole lot of risk. As it turns out, it’s not dangerous to vape after a beer or two, but you could be experiencing some adverse effects.
Poor Judgment

If you get extremely high and drunk at the same time, it can certainly impair your judgment. It is shown that when alcohol and weed are mixed, it can result in sensation-seeking behavior. In other words, you’re likelier to make bad decisions when the two are mixed.

Cognitive Function

Not only are you likelier to make bad choices when you consume both substances together, but you’re also going to take longer to make decisions in the first place. Consuming alcohol and weed leads to reduced cognitive function, which includes memory, decision-making, problem-solving, and more.

In layman’s terms, you’re going to be far too intoxicated to function properly. This also applies to functions like driving. Yes, both alcohol and weed impair your ability to drive a vehicle, but when taken together, driving appears to become nearly impossible altogether.

Dependency

Some studies support the claims that consuming both alcohol and cannabis together can lead to the overconsumption of one or both, which over the long run could lead to serious alcohol or cannabis dependency.

There is also evidence that people who take both together are more likely to drink more often than if only one substance were consumed at a time.

With long-term use, there is the risk of developing serious physical side effects associated with overuse and dependency. Drinking or smoking too much can affect your internal organs and more.

Possible Mental Health Problems

There is research that shows that frequent and heavy alcohol use can lead to poor mental health. At the same time, it is shown that very frequent and heavy cannabis use may accelerate the onset of various mental health issues and psychiatric illnesses.

Therefore, if both are taken together regularly, it is safe to assume that these effects affecting mental health can combine and amplify each other.

Where to Buy Delta-9 Gummies

If you are looking for some awesome Delta-9 gummies, Botany Farms is the best place for you. If you want to go easy, then these Microdose Gummies are something we’d recommend. They have 5 mg of Delta-9 and 5 mg of CBD per gummy, for a total of 10 gummies per pack.

If you want something a bit stronger, here we have Delta-9 THC Gummies with 10 mg of THC and 14 mg of CBD per gummy, for a total of 15 gummies per pack.

Links to sources used in this article:

• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9915622/
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6401297/
• https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0028390823003556
• https://www.publichealthontario.ca/-/media/documents/E/2018/eb-risk-factors-alcohol-cannabis.pdf
• https://academic.oup.com/alcalc/article/49/3/292/209965