Pot Pop - ©Canna Cola

Cannabis-Infused Foods: May Have Hidden Dangers

I’m no prude, and I’m not out to start a crusade against Cannabis-infused consumables. But since they’re coming soon to a Pot Shop near me in the latest phase of the legal recreational Cannabis rollout, I thought it might be a good idea to look at the potential downside…

Gummy Bears - © wikipedia comons“It looks like a gummy bear and children will consume it because it’s candy
and it tastes great,” Cst. Monika Terragni with Comox RCMP, in
reference to a Vancouver Island toddler poisoning case.

Hallowe’en bought it to mind…

No one could have escaped the media coverage of official warnings about ‘tainted’ Candy this Hallowe’en season. What caught my attention was, police and medical authorities just glossed over the usual cautions about razor blades, needles or pins and dwelt heavily upon the danger of kids bringing home Cannabis-spiked treats in their goody bags. Yes, with the legalization of Cannabis for recreational use here in Canada over the past year, there has been a spike in Weed-related illness among young children, and a smaller though significant in crease in ‘overdose’ cases among adults who don’t realize that consumable Cannabis acts differently in your body than the stuff they’re used to smoking. Not to mention adults who never smoked the stuff, but are tempted to try the edibles, which won’t cause them lung trouble, and don’t leave behind that distinctive Weed smoke smell…

No way to tell

You can’t tall a Pot Brownie from a regular one by smell, appearance or taste. You can’t tell a Cannabis-infused beverage from a regular one, either. Nor can you tell harmless, wholesome family favourite like Turkey Gravy from one made with KIVA’s new Cannabis-infused Turkey Gravy Mix. It’s a powder in a pouch, like any other Gravy or Soup Mix, but it contains 10 mg of THC (the active ingredient in Cannabis) in every pack. What happens if someone around your Thanksgiving table doesn’t want to, or like to consume Cannabis? What if they have to drive soon after dinner? What if the kids get hold of it? What about the dog and the leftovers? That’s a lot of what-ifs. Unless you plan to have some available as a Thanksgiving Dinner novelty, for a crowd of appropriate adult diners, I’d just skip the gag and make regular gravy, as usual.

Remember: You’re the host. You served the stuff. You’re responsible for anything bad that befalls any of your guests.

Pot edibles left unguarded, unlabelled

Some 582 people under the age of 20 visited an emergency department in either Ontario or Alberta due to cannabis poisoning in 2017-18, according to reportable numbers from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), an increase of 50 percent over the year prior, and twice the number reported in 2013-2014. This year, it seems we’re seeing something every week on the Internet or in the papers or on TV about children getting into into Cannabis infused candy and beverages and ending up in the hospital with overdose symptoms.

Part of the problem, experts tell us, is that kids can’t tell the difference between Pot treats and plain ones. Hence stories in the recent media reports about children falling ill after raiding their babysitter’s purse stash of Weed edibles, or mistaking a can of Pot-pumped Pop for a regular one in the fridge (see photo, top of page).

“There’s going to be more cases, just because of that novelty factor,” Szabo said. “If something looks like a little bunny rabbit, it’s hard to imagine that could actually make you feel really bad. It actually can,” Dr. Michael Szabo, an emergency physician at Toronto’s University Health Network, told Global News. And it’s not just kids who are falling prey to the potential ill effects of Cannabis edibles. “Edibles are this newer form of cannabis. Years ago, people smoked it more exclusively. So it’s this idea that I can eat a gummy or a brownie or whatever. I just think there’s not a built-in appreciation for how to do that in a safe manner.”

Take your responsibility seriously

If you keep Cannabis edibles (or drinkables) around your house, keep them in a secure, childproof place.

Always tell friends and adult family when you’re offering them Weed-whacked treats. The effects might not become evident to the consumer for half an hour after they eat the stuff, and by then they be be at the wheel of a car in heavy traffic.

And remember: You can never be sure how much or how little THC there may be in home-made edibles, so caution in how much you consume is essential. Even after Cannabis consumables become legal for sale at licensed Pot Shops, be aware that the labelling of cottage-industry’ products and even commercial ones may not be completely accurate. Time for the government to gear up to give close scrutiny to legal edible Pot products when they flood the market. And, maybe, labelling regulations need another look, too, with an eye to warning people about the intoxicating effects and ‘overdose’ issuses.

Disclaimer:

This writer has never used Cannabis in any form, nor does she intend to. She has never used Tobacco in any form. Nor has she ‘done’ any kinds of drugs recreationally. Unless you count her drug of choice, Alcohol, usually administered in 4 oz. / 120 ml doses hourly, between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. Fridays through Sundays.

~ Maggie J.