Q. What is Juicing?
A. Processing raw Cannabis buds, stems or leaves into a juice! Yes, it is actually possible to process leftover cannabis leaves and or buds into a cannabinoid-rich juice that you can drink!
It is important to note that since it is not being decarboxylated it will not get you “high”. This can be a major benefit for patients who are young, old, or in a weakened condition, and need THC, but not the psychoactive effect.
Q. How is it done?
A. The most important thing to note about juicing is that you receive drastically better results when starting with a freshly cut cannabis plant. A blender or juicer are traditional processing tools. While you can use a traditional juicer it will oxidize the plant material too quickly, so we advise you use a hand press. Either way, however, the fresher the better!
Your goal is to remove as many of the oils and cannabinoids inside of the plant. Fresher, also “not cured” means more water in the plant and more juice. Using material after it has been cured can be extremely inefficient.
Please make sure the cannabis plant was organically grown without pesticides, these can make you very sick. Ugh.
Q. What are the health benefits of juicing?
A. Juicing offers you a jam-packed glass of cannabinoids along with the other nutrients found in leafy greens, such as fiber, calcium and iron! Think leafy green smoothie, with dense THC & CBD cannabinoids for nutritional supplement, fitness recovery and medicinal regimens.
Are there other reasons why someone would choose juicing?
Personal preference, each of us has a desire to consume cannabis differently out of choice or need. Some prefer smoking, while others might have physical conditions that benefit from edible or topical medications. In these cases, the benefit of juicing is ingesting large amounts of raw cannabinoids without experiencing a stony effect.
Q. Can juicing fight cancer?
Although the absorption of cannabinoids into the body has been shown to have an impact on cancer and other medical ailments, until more studies have been conducted, there is not enough scientific evidence to support the claim that juicing helps fight cancer.
Q. Does the body respond to THC from juicing differently than THC from Edibles?
The biggest factor that can change how your body responds is whether the THC has been decarboxylated or not. When
cannabis is heated to a specific temperature, the THC is activated and produces a psychoactive effect when ingested. This transition is known as decarboxylation.
The best example to give would be Cannabis butter. When making Cannabis butter, the plant material goes through a heating process that turns THC-a into THC. The difference being that THC-a does not have the psychoactive impact of THC.
Q. What about juicing CBD-rich plants?
A. Similar to concentrates, squeezing out the cannabinoids from the plant will provide a juice, similar to the ratio of the cannabinoids contained within that plant. In this case if you’re juicing a plant rich in CBD, the amount of CBD will be much higher!
Q. What’s the history of juicing?
A. From what I have read, some theories suggest that cannabis plants go back as far as 12,000 years. Chances are once the wonderful elements of this plant were realized, not a lot of it was put to waste.
Dr. Mike Wooly, MJWooly.com