Lack of dosage standards
Unfortunately, there’s no set standard. The unofficial recommendation from experts is five milligrams of THC in a typical dose, but this is not a publicized dosage standard such as those that we see in the alcohol industry.
Additionally, five milligrams may be too strong a dosage for new users, who would be better off micro dosing with smaller amounts of THC. Ultimately, when you buy weed in drinks, you really have no idea how much you're consuming.
Unpredictable highs
Even though dosing through drinking THC infused beverages is easier to control than that of eating edibles, your high can still be all over the place. It’s not the same situation as consuming three beers or a few glasses of wine at a party. The THC effects could be anywhere from euphoric to unpleasant, especially in an infrequent or new user.
Weed drinks are still new
Cannabis beverages are still in the infancy stages, so there’s still so much we don’t know about them. Health experts do not yet have enough information about weed drinks to be able to advise the public as to any best consumption practices. Whether this includes addiction or long-term side effects, the data is not yet there.
What’s next
While we can expect to see standardizations applied to the cannabis beverage and edibles industries in the coming years, it’s still a good idea to do your own research. You should always get as much data as you can from a variety of unbiased sources before you consume anything, especially when it comes to ingesting cannabis.
Sources: National Institute on Drug Abuse, New York Times, Yale Medicine
