# Medicinal marijuana where legal -- only smoked form available? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 20, 2006, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838 "2006-01-20T16:39:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/1 "2006-01-20T16:39:43Z")
Let’s say a patient lives in California or Alaska, or wherever else in the world that medicinal marijuana is legal. Further, let’s suppose said patient has a condition for which a doctor recommends use of medicinal marijuana. The patient has never attempted to smoke anything in my life … and is highly reluctant to start. Are there legitimate pills or syrups made from the active ingredient of marijuana? ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/2 "2006-01-20T17:42:43Z")
[nitpick] There is no more legal medical mary jane in the US. Federal law supersedes state law. Both the Civil War and the courts have confirmed this. [/nitpick] ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/3 "2006-01-20T17:50:11Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > Are there legitimate pills or syrups made from the active ingredient of marijuana? Disclaimer: this is _old_ anecdotal information. When my mother was terminally ill almost 20 years ago, one of the side-effects of the cancer was a loss of appetite. At the time of her death, her oncologist was in the process of getting her approved for pills containing THC, the active ingredient in marijuana. Even though my mother wouldn’t have necessarily been averse to smoking something, seeing as her cancer originated in her lungs, it wouldn’t make sense to recommend she smoke _anything_. ---
**Author:** ![DougC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@DougC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DougC)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/4 "2006-01-20T17:59:58Z")
- - - I don’t know of any other form. Supposedly a few years back people in Europe had figured out how to extract the active ingredient in liquid form, and it was much more concentrated that way. The “fears” mentioned were that it was much easier to smuggle larger quantities of it, but I only ever read the one news story about it and everyone I know who uses it still smokes the dried leaves. - Back when one of the states did start “non-enforcement” against medical buyer’s clubs (I think this was the clubs in California), I did ask my doc about the subject–not because it was anything I needed (and he already knew that drugs weren’t my thing anyway) but just because I was curious as to when a doctor would prescribe a patient _smoke_ anything–because obviously, it couldn’t help one’s lungs any. He said all he had really heard much about was its use for relieving glaucoma, and in that regard–a doctor would normally only suggest it to someone who had already been smoking regular tobacco for a long time anyway. ~ ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/5 "2006-01-20T18:05:22Z")
Smoke? Ugh. _Vaporizers_ are the only way to go. (As if! How much do those things cost?) ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/6 "2006-01-20T19:14:06Z")
There is Marinol ([www.marinol.com/patient\_care.html](http://www.marinol.com/patient_care.html)) (Warning: that page is apparently illegal to read for residents of Maine), which is a pill. > [@](#): > > "The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved MARINOL® to treat nausea and vomiting associated with cancer chemotherapy in patients who have failed to respond adequately to conventional treatments. > > The FDA also approved MARINOL® to treat appetite loss associated with weight loss in people with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)" THC is not water soluble, so you can’t make tea. It is fat soluble, so it can be extracted by oils and fats. It is slightly soluble in alcohol, but not effeciently so. It is very soluble in acetone - which then needs to be removed before consumption. Needless to say, making or owning extracts of marijuana is just as illegal as possessing the plant itself. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/7 "2006-01-20T19:15:21Z")
Damn, I tried to make that cut’n’pasteable. Will someone report that so a Mod can break the link (since it’s illegal in Maine)? ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/8 "2006-01-20T19:24:29Z")
Where does it say anything about it being illegal to read in Maine? ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/9 "2006-01-20T19:28:52Z")
Bake it into some brownies… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![SuaSponte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/67e7ee/32.png) [@SuaSponte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuaSponte)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/10 "2006-01-20T19:30:29Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > THC is not water soluble, so you can’t make tea. I must beg to differ. 😉 Sua ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/11 "2006-01-20T19:38:40Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > Let’s say a patient lives in California or Alaska, or wherever else in the world that medicinal marijuana is legal. Further, let’s suppose said patient has a condition for which a doctor recommends use of medicinal marijuana. > > The patient has never attempted to smoke anything in my life … and is highly reluctant to start. Are there legitimate pills or syrups made from the active ingredient of marijuana? I’ve never been to one, but I understand that medical marijuana clubs sell all sorts of baked goods and possibly other ways to consume it. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/12 "2006-01-20T19:44:28Z")
> [@Captain Amazing](#): > > Where does it say anything about it being illegal to read in Maine? At the page I should have linked to in the first place: [http://www.marinol.com/](http://www.marinol.com/) \*\* SuaSponte\*\*, of course you CAN make tea out of it, but it’s a waste of good herbage. Any effects you feel are purely placebo. I will refrain from further questionable linking, but if you google **marijuana water soluble** , you’ll get many hits (pun intended?) confirming that THC and it’s related compounds are not extractable in water, from lots of folks in the know. (That’s why water pipes work, incidently. If the THC stayed in the water, there’d be none to smoke!) ---
**Author:** ![Squee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@Squee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squee)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/13 "2006-01-20T22:15:42Z")
My roommate has a cannibis buyers club card (she travels to Oakland/Hayward clubs, but is starting to use the one’s in Santa Cruz). In addition to the regular herb, she also has access to brownies, some sort of liquid form, and she owns a volcano vaporizer. When I see her, I’ll ask her if the club offers it in any other forms. ---
**Author:** ![MizGrand](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cdc98d/32.png) [@MizGrand](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MizGrand)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/14 "2006-01-20T22:30:36Z")
I have my doctor-recommended Co-Op card and frequent a dispensary in Hayward. They carry at any given time, about 25 (prob’ly more) different strains of bud, several types of hash, chemically & naturally separated crystals, infused honey, infused oils, brownies & cookies and candy bars. There’s probably more that I’ve forgotten to mention. I can now get the absolute creme de la creme. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![MizGrand](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cdc98d/32.png) [@MizGrand](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MizGrand)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/15 "2006-01-20T22:39:32Z")
I have my doctor-recommended Co-Op card and frequent a dispensary in Hayward. They carry at any given time, about 25 (prob’ly more) different strains of bud, several types of hash, chemically & naturally separated crystals, infused honey, infused oils, brownies & cookies and candy bars. There’s probably more that I’ve forgotten to mention. I can now get the absolute creme de la creme. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/16 "2006-01-20T23:11:21Z")
**RSSchen** , were I you I’d rethink my stance of admitting to current and continuing illegal activity on a public message board. –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/17 "2006-01-21T02:13:59Z")
Oh, fuck the paranoia already! Stand up for liberation! ::exasperated:: ---
**Author:** ![autobulb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@autobulb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/autobulb)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/18 "2006-01-21T10:57:42Z")
If alternatives are not available, it’s simple enough to cook the plant in some oil until the THC is extracted, then use the oil on any food. Brownies are a popular option. ---
**Author:** ![MizGrand](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cdc98d/32.png) [@MizGrand](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MizGrand)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/19 "2006-01-21T11:59:31Z")
> [@Cliffy](#): > > **RSSchen** , were I you I’d rethink my stance of admitting to current and continuing illegal activity on a public message board. > > –Cliffy Thanks Cliffy, but it’s not illegal for me. The cops could pull me over here in Hayward, and nothing would come of it. I’ve followed the steps that the state mandates so, for me right now where I’m at, it IS legal. ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838/20 "2006-01-21T14:06:12Z")
Again, were I you, I’d look at **CynicalGabe** ’s first post in this thread. –Cliffy [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicinal-marijuana-where-legal-only-smoked-form-available/340838.md?page=2)