Marijuana is now legal across Canada and you can even buy weed online. While marijuana usually only lasts for a few hours, THC can stay in your system for longer. Generally, this won’t cause any problems, but if you’re trying to detox or have a drug test coming up, it helps to know how long marijuana stays in your system and how to get it out. Here’s everything you need to know.
How Long Do The Effects Of Marijuana Last?
When you use marijuana, you’ll generally only feel high for a few hours. However, various factors can come into play here, such as the kind of product you use, how potent it is, your tolerance for THC, and your chosen method of consumption.
A study on marijuana use found that when you smoke marijuana, the effects usually hit you instantly, reach their peak at around 15-30 minutes after consumption, and wear off after around 3-4 hours. However, different marijuana products can have different effects- some strains of marijuana are stronger than others and there are also different methods of consumption to consider.
A study on vaping marijuana found that, like smoking, effects usually peak after around 30 minutes and begin to wear off after around 3-4 hours. However, it also found that vaping produces stronger effects than smoking.
Most marijuana products last for around the same amount of time. However, Edibles are a notable exception. When you consume marijuana edibles, the high generally starts at around 30-90 minutes after consumption, peaks at around 1-2 hours after consumption and can last for as long as 4-12 hours.
How Long Does Marijuana Stay In Your System?
Although the high from marijuana usually only lasts for a few hours (except for edibles), marijuana can stay in your system for much longer. When you consume THC in any form, it binds to cannabinoid receptors and metabolites in your body. As such, you may have to wait a while until marijuana is completely out of your system.
Research shows that around 80-90% of the THC in marijuana is flushed out of your system within 5 days. As such, your body should be clear of marijuana in less than a week. However, numerous factors can impact how long it stays in your system. Heavy marijuana users may have THC in their system for a few weeks to a month whereas one-time users may be free of THC in their system within a few days.
Fortunately, THC staying in your system won’t have much of an impact. You won’t continue to feel high and it generally won’t cause any harm. However, it can be detected on a drug test and, as such, you may want to take measures to flush THC out of your system if you have a drug test coming up.
How To Get Marijuana Out Of Your System
Most users in Canada won’t have to worry about THC in their system. Although it can last for a few days, it won’t make you high or cause any problems. However, some users will need to get marijuana out of their system if they have an upcoming drug test or simply want to detox. Fortunately, there are many effective ways to flush marijuana out of your system.
Drinking plenty of water is always helpful. Water helps dilute THC in your system and, more importantly, helps you flush it out faster. Other fluids such as cranberry juice and prune juice can also help speed up digestion and excretion, therefore helping you get THC out of your system faster.
Your diet can also have an impact. Eating foods high in fiber and protein can help boost your digestion and make you excrete more marijuana. In cases where you have a drug test coming up fast, you may even want to consider taking vitamins and even laxatives to help speed up the process.
How Long Will Marijuana Be Detected By A Drug Test?
Whether marijuana will be detected by a drug test depends on a few factors. First-time users can often pass tests within a few days whereas heavy marijuana users often have THC in their system for longer. More importantly, there are different types of drug tests and each has a different detection window.
Marijuana can be detected in a blood test within around 24 hours, but this kind of test is rarely used. A saliva test can detect marijuana use within around 12 hours, but this is generally only used for intoxicated drivers. It’s important to not drive while under the influence of marijuana no matter how much you’ve used.
Most commonly, urine tests are used to detect marijuana and other drugs. These can detect marijuana for around 5-7 days, although frequent users may even be detected for longer. If you have a test coming up, it’s best to take measures to mask THC in your system and flush it out faster.
Hair follicle tests can detect marijuana in your system for even longer- sometimes as long as 1-2 months. However, these tests are also rarely used.
How To Avoid Failing A Drug Test From Marijuana
If you have a urine test coming up and you’ve used marijuana recently, it’s important to get it out of your system as fast as possible. Naturally, drinking plenty of fluids and eating foods to speed up your digestion will help. However, there are also certain methods used to pass drug tests even when you’ve used marijuana in the past few days.
Water helps dilute THC in your system but can also result in a flagged test. Using supplements such as Creatinine and B Vitamins helps counteract this problem. It’s best to use these in the days leading up to a drug test and drink around a liter or two of water a couple of hours before your test.
The best approach is to buy a marijuana detox kit. These come with everything you need to mask THC in your system and pass a drug test. Some even come with home testing kits so you can ensure that you test clean.
Conclusion
Marijuana generally only stays in your system for around 5 days to a week, although heavy marijuana use can result in THC staying in your system for longer. Fortunately, most users won’t have to worry as having THC in their system won’t cause any problems. If you have a drug test coming up, you’ll want to drink plenty of fluids and even consider using a detox kit to pass.
