For many cannabis consumers, the potency of a product is the most important factor when making their purchase. While most cannabis users are aware that concentrates are the most powerful cannabis products available on the market, there is less public awareness on how to approach using them safely. As concentrates can be many times stronger than regular cannabis products, their overwhelming effects can be too much for inexperienced or low-tolerance users. If you’re curious about how to use cannabis concentrates, here’s what to know about easing into them.
Knowing Your Tolerance
Before using cannabis concentrates, it’s important to do an evaluation of your tolerance level. If you’re someone who regularly uses cannabis products, then cannabis concentrates may have less of an overbearing effect on you.
However, for individuals with low tolerance, and especially those who have never tried cannabis products at all, the use of cannabis concentrates can be dangerous. While overdosing on cannabis is not typically within the realm of possibility unless one has certain conditions, ingesting too much THC can create severe discomfort.
Dosing with Potent Cannabis
Because cannabis concentrates are many degrees stronger than flower products, handling them can require extra caution. Prior to taking the plunge, it is recommended to start first with forms of cannabis that offer mid-range potency, or a stronger high than would result from smoking cannabis normally.
To this end, “lighter” forms of concentrated cannabis can be employed. Kief, for example, is collected trichomes that can be sprinkled onto joints or bowls to pack them with an extra punch. Likewise, joints can be dipped in cannabis oil, which will allow them to burn longer and produce smoke that hits harder than typical joints. For the truly daring, these additives can be combined to create even more potent concoctions.
How to Use Cannabis Concentrates
Once you’ve had experience with THC, the question of how to use cannabis concentrates is relatively simple. While it can be used with normal smoking apparatuses like pipes and bongs, it is highly recommended to use them with special equipment known as a “dabbing rig”. Dabbing rigs can be purchased from online retailers, or from certain cannabis retailers in recreationally legal states.
The power of cannabis concentrates cannot be stressed enough to those who are not familiar with them. When approaching them, always take care to use very small amounts at first and work your way from there, gradually increasing the dose you take to your individual preference. Remember, while you can always ingest more THC, you can’t undo the amount you have already ingested. Dosing too much can lead to the aforementioned uncomfortable experiences that ruin the joy of cannabis.
At The Higher Path, we pride ourselves on offering the Los Angeles area the very best locally sourced cannabis products available in the state of California. We take full advantage of recreational legalization to provide customers and patients with clean, potent cannabis in the form of edibles, pre-roll joints, concentrates, cartridges, tinctures, and more, all served by a friendly and knowledgeable staff. Want to know more? Follow us on Instagram and Facebook!