Something new: THC-infused soft drinks

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As a law-abiding citizen I didn’t use marijuana or any other illegal drugs.

Once, when I was an 18-year old college sophomore, a friend of mine invited me to her police officer cousin’s house for lunch. Naively, I thought that the police couldn’t possibly do anything illegal, right? Well, said cop had busted a drug dealer and stolen his stash of Columbia Gold weed. They offered me a joint and naively I smoked it. (Very irritating to the lungs.) As an adult I realized how many ethical problems were inherent in this scenario but as a teenager I didn’t understand this.

I began to hallucinate. My fork began to move side to side. The patterns on the wallpaper began to ripple and shimmy. I didn’t like it at all. Strangely, when I arrived home my parents didn’t notice that I was stoned since I didn’t act any different. (Unlike with alcohol my physical coordination was normal.)

I avoided cannabis after that even after Washington State legalized it. A key factor in my selection of DH was his anti-drug stance.

Although cannabis is illegal on a federal level several states have legalized it. Now there is a legal way to buy THC even in states where cannabis is illegal.

https://www.wsj.com/health/wellness/you-can-drink-your-weed-now-what-to-know-about-thc-beverages-e4def753?mod=wsjhp_columnists_pos_2

You Can Drink Your Weed Now. What to Know About THC Beverages

The effects of THC drinks hit sooner than edibles but later than joints. They all have risks.

By Sumathi Reddy, The Wall Street Journal, May 3, 2025

Key Points

  • Cannabis drinks containing THC and CBD are gaining popularity as alternatives to alcohol, driven by health concerns.

  • The 2018 Farm Bill created a loophole, allowing the sale of hemp-derived THC drinks outside of dispensaries, even where marijuana is illegal.

  • THC drinks can have similar health risks to edibles, including impaired judgment and mental-health issues, and may be more potent with food.

Walk into a beverage store in many states and there is a newer product jockeying for space with the beer, wine and hard liquor: Meet the cannabis drink. …

The 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp-derived products with small concentrations of THC—no more than 0.3% in dry weight. This created a loophole allowing the sale of cannabis products even in states where THC isn’t legal.

Companies have interpreted the bill to make drinks with less than 0.3% THC by volume, which can be enough to get high. The bill also made it possible for people to get such products outside of dispensaries. …

On average people feel the effects of the drinks within 20 to 30 minutes, reaching a peak in 45 minutes to an hour…

The global THC seltzer market was valued at $344.7 million in 2023 and is projected to grow to about $2 billion by 2030…

Health risks include impaired judgment, attention span and coordination, and raising the risk of car accidents, falls, and injuries. Long-term use can also lead to significant mental-health issues and addiction. And THC can lead some people to experience short-term psychosis, anxiety and an elevated heart rate. … [end quote]

About one out of three people is susceptible to addiction to THC due to a mutation. Many of the health problems of THC are similar to alcohol if either is overused. Drinks infused with THC don’t damage the lungs like smoke. Research is lacking on THC but it may not be associated with cancer the way alcohol is.

The article didn’t say anything about age restrictions on buying THC-infused soft drinks. This raises the potential of underage users.

For adults who want to get a buzz without a hangover and are able to use sensibly (i.e. don’t drive) this sounds like a reasonable alternative to alcohol.

I wonder what companies will market this product. The photo in the article looks like small, local companies. But eventually a major international marketer (e.g. Coca Cola or Diageo) might tap into this new market segment the way Altria tapped into vaping.
Wendy

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As a law-abiding citizen you can now be a law-inbibing citizen!

Hawkwin
Twice law-inbiding citizen

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That was not marijuana, which does not produce hallucinations (*except in astonishingly high doses, and especially not with the stuff that was available in the 60’s.)

You probably got a whiff of acid, mescaline or some other psychotropic drug; that was not common but neither was it uncommon back then, as users looked for ways to “enhance” the experience.

Pot and hash in those days was magnitudes less potent than what is around today and it’s certainly possible to get totally baked on a small amount, given the “progress” the farmers have made.

I had a roommate in college who was a drug dealer, not big time but supplied every substance known to the industry at the time to most everyone in the school, and yes, I had them all.

I burnt out my lungs on tobacco, not pot, so I can’t smoke anymore, but the occasional gummie is fun. Mrs. Goofy flew to Oregon last year for a “supervised” LSD trip and has thought about going back, but hasn’t decided yet. Pretty expensive, about $5G altogether, a lot more than the $5 we used to spend on a blot.

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Dear Goof,

Curious, what is your age?

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From Scientific American:

Pot Linked to Psychosis in Teens

Researchers tracked the onset of chronic psychotic disorders among more than 11,000 teenagers in Canada over several years. By the time the cohort reached age 20, the cumulative incidence of psychotic disorders was about 4 percent in those who had used cannabis in the past year compared with less than 1 percent of nonusers.

Why this matters: New strains of cannabis are highly potent, making them more addictive and potentially more dangerous, especially to teenagers, writes Carrie E. Bearden, a professor of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences and psychology at UCLA. The risk of psychosis increases with higher levels of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the intoxicating component of the cannabis plant.

What the experts say: Why are teens particularly affected? The same molecules in the brain that interact with THC (known as the endocannabinoid system) play an essential role in brain development. “There is growing evidence from both animal and human studies that early cannabis exposure can disrupt the way brain cells, or neurons, respond to what we experience, and how they talk to each other to make those experiences memories,” Bearden says. [end quote]

Wendy

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78, like the rpm’s of an earlier era of records. But I came up during the era of 45’s and then 33 1/3’s.

Yes, as I said, the newer, “cultured” and hybrid strains are far more powerful than anything available in the 60’s or 70’s. Google AI:

Marijuana today is significantly more potent than it was 50 years ago, primarily due to increased THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) levels. While THC levels in the 1960s and 1970s were generally below 1%, today's cannabis products can reach 15% or more, with some concentrates exceeding 90%

50 years ago the worst you could do with pot is to get half baked, probably with a headache for your trouble. Still it was worth it, since the high was in a totally different direction than alcohol, and young people love to experiment. Hashish, also lower grade, was a darker high, but otherwise the same. People also played with uppers and downers, or mixed and matched for fun. (My roommate, who I mentioned, later became addicted to heroin for a brief time, then spent his life as a drug counselor. It was a wild and crazy time…)

If you were getting hallucinations, the pot was laced or sprayed with a psychoactive like LSD or mescaline or psilocybin (certain magic mushrooms) or similar , or occasionally speed (crushed diet pills most commonly) for a different experience.

The worst pot today is still 10-20 times stronger than the best pot was 50 years ago. These days there really is a danger (not overarchingly great, certainly no worse than serious abuse of alcohol) but people think it’s “just pot” like that which was around in the hippie and disco days. It’s not.

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“worst pot today is still 10-20 times stronger”

I don’t smoke, but some friends from way back still do, and they’d agree with you 100%. It’s legal ( I think, lol ) to grow a small amount here, and the stuff they grow on their deck would have the pot smokers of the 70s and 80s salivating at the quality. No comparison, at all, between now and then.
Now, they will just take 1 inhale, and they are good for awhile. Not like the harsh, ditch-weed stuff we grew up with.

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And how many people remember the hippie days? That was more than half a century ago…

DB2

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Dear Bob,

I remember it all in vivid detail because I was not there.

I smoked both herb and cigs for a while but was clean of them early on. I do not like myself with substances.

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There is a problem called Canabanoid Hyperemesis syndrome (CHS) and caused by excessive regular THC/CBD ingestion.

This is a large problem among regular THC product users. My cousin suffers from his habit and cannot come to grips that IT is the problem.

Oh well. Messy floors and chronically malnourished he goes…

Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf

Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS), characterized by intense vomiting and abdominal pain, can be triggered by chronic, heavy cannabis use, particularly THC. While some individuals with cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS) may use cannabis for symptom relief, chronic use can paradoxically lead to CHS, potentially misdiagnosing CHS as CVS.

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