Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Cannabis—which can also be called marijuana, weed, pot, or bud—refers to the dried flowers, leaves, stems, and seeds of the cannabis plant. The cannabis plant contains more than 100 compounds (or cannabinoids). These compounds include tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is impairing or mind-altering, as well as other active compounds, such as cannabidiol (CBD). CBD is not impairing, meaning it does not cause a "high".
Cannabis can be used in a number of ways. Cannabis can be smoked in joints (like a cigarette), in blunts (cigars or cigar wrappers that have been partly or completely refilled with cannabis), or in bongs (pipes or water pipes). Cannabis also can be mixed or infused into foods like cookies, cakes, or brownies (called edibles) and can be infused in drinks.
It can be vaped using electronic vaporizing devices (i.e., e-cigarettes or vape pens) or other vaporizers. Compounds (or cannabinoids) in cannabis can also be extracted to make oils and concentrates that can be vaped or inhaled. Smoking oils, concentrates, and extracts from the cannabis plant, known as "dabbing," is on the rise. Health and safety risks exist for each of the different ways of using cannabis.
Cannabis products that contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) can have health risks no matter how they are used because THC is impairing. THC can affect memory, attention, decision-making, and risk-taking.
Health and safety risks exist for each of the different ways of using cannabis, and scientists do not have enough evidence to say that using cannabis in one way is safer than another. For example, smoking cannabis can expose you and those around you to harmful chemicals.
Oils and concentrates used in vaping and dabbing (which is a specific method of inhaling THC concentrates) often have highly concentrated forms of THC and may contain additives or be contaminated with other substances. The effects of using these more concentrated forms of THC are not well understood but may include higher risk of developing cannabis use disorder. Vaping has also been linked to lung injury.
