Whether you are a cannabis connoisseur for years, a novice user who enjoys the cannabis community, or a one-time user curious about the weed’s power, it is a proper and necessary thing to ask how long does weed stay in the body. Your level of marijuana intake affects the answer to this question. Marijuana does not go away easily from our bodies even if the psychoactive effects have already subsided. How long does marijuana stay in your system? As mentioned, it depends according to one’s dosage.
A Not-Quite Simple Answer: It Depends
Cannabis traces are typically found in body fluids within one to thirty days since the last use. It may still be detected in the hair, just like some other drugs, for months. The bandwidth of marijuana detection depends on the dosage smoked, ingested, or other forms of administration, and the frequency. In general, cannabis can be detected for longer times for frequent users and higher doses.
For those of you who take weed like a meal, that is, day by day, then it would take several months before it becomes undetected. And if you are one of those, you might ask what is the longest time cannabis has been detected in the body. The record is over 90 days.
Detailed Answer: Several Ways of Testing
The goal of drug testing is to measure cannabis and its metabolites. These metabolites stay in your body for longer times than the weed’s obvious effects and even when they have subsided already. To prove that you are not (or truly are) a pothead or just a user, you have to undergo drug testing. There are several forms of testing and they differ in terms of detection time.
Blood Samples
Normally, blood tests can only detect within one to two days since cannabis use. This is backed up by medical data. In rare cases, however, detection can be up to 25 days or more. Most certainly, this is due to one frequent (or chronic) administration of cannabis. The more frequent a user takes weed, the longer it stays in the body.
Weed can be found in your bloodstream just seconds after smoking it. It’s spread across several places. It’s spread to the body tissues. Any of this is reabsorbed in the blood and broken down. Its metabolites can stay in the bloodstream for days to come.
The cannabinoid concentrations of 25 regular cannabis users in the blood were tracked in a 2009 report. Nine or 36 percent of individuals had no detectable THC in the system after 7 days of cannabis abstinence, whereas the other sixteen still had a single person who tested positive with THC during the same period. Six subjects remained at detectable THC levels just after the weeklong term, with all subjects still having measurable THC-COOH levels.
Thus, while THC’s active form does not last for a long time in one’s bloodstream, THC traces or metabolites may still be observed quite a few weeks after one’s use.
Saliva Test
In the mouth or saliva of casual and frequent users, THC and THC metabolites could also be observed. In a study in 2014, THC metabolites could be detected in the cannabis user’s saliva during 1 to 2 days and frequent users may test positive within or over 30 days.
Testing with hair
There is growing evidence that testing methods of the hair follicle cannot reliably detect cannabis, as some study indicates that THC and its metabolites may be passed to a nonuser’s hair follicles by hand contact, exhaled smoke, or sweat. For example, when someone consumes a joint then exhales nearby someone who’s not smoking weed, THC may be passed to the head of the hair of the nonsmoker. A 2015 research reported that after giving the subjects 50 mg of THCA a day for a month, THC was not detected in hair samples, however, THC-COOH had been detected. The timeline of hair drug test is much wider than for urine and blood tests, often detecting THC presence up to or within 90 days since last use.
Moreover, a 2017 research that examined hair samples obtained from 136 participants observed detectable THC levels in 77 percent of habitual users, 39 percent of occasional users, including zero traces in nonusers, indicating that the possibility of catching THC content in hair increases significantly with the increased usage frequency. Although the research authors claimed that the hair test method is a viable way to detect cannabis use, they also agree that it is ineffective to detect light cannabis use.
How long will the body take to break down these metabolites?
THC, after intaking, will run freely in your bloodstream. Any THC is contained in the lungs and fatty tissues. THC may be reabsorbed into the bloodstream in the kidneys. The liver breaks down THC. The most important metabolites are 11-OH-THC and THCCOOH. Drug tests aim to detect these chemicals that remain longer in the body than THC. Sooner or later, urine and stool excrete THC and THC metabolites.
How long does marijuana stay in your system? What are the influences that affect it?
Many things influence how long marijuana remains in your body. A few of these variables, such as age and gender, including BMI or body mass index, are not linked to the substance directly, but to all the processes and metabolizing your body generates. Some considerations are marijuana strain and how it is administered. This involves how high the dosage and how frequent it is taken. Larger doses and frequent use of cannabis take more for the body to excrete them. Highly potent weeds (high THC levels) may also linger longer in your body. Weed swallowed can also stay probably longer in the body than weed smoked.
Can you do something to metabolize it more quickly?
You can’t do anything to accelerate the time required for marijuana to leave your system. Upon entering your body, your system requires time in breaking down cannabis. Regular exercise, a healthy diet, and drinking plenty of water may change a little, but not drastically. Several cannabis detox solutions and kits are available online. Some need a large amount of water to dilute the urine, followed by taking herbal supplements like vitamin B-12 to disguise dilution. They don’t work consistently.
Conclusion
The effects of Marijuana tend to shrink after 1-3 hours. Some adverse effects, including memory issues or sleeping difficulty, may last some days. Researchers are not certain how long symptoms are caused by frequent use last. Effects can be long-term and may last from days to months even after stopping cannabis use. Some consequences maybe for a lifetime. But how long does marijuana stay in your system? Detection bandwidths depend on drug test methods and other considerations, including whether you frequently smoke or eat weeds regularly.