(Nicole Karlis/ Salon) — While the United States is yet to fully nationalize recreational marijuana, our northern neighbors are, as usual, ahead of the curve. Recreational marijuana has been fully legal across Canada since October 2018. That has given Canadian medical researchers ample time to observe the social and public health effects of full, nationwide legalization. And it turns out that edibles — one of the more benign-seeming pot products — have an outsize role in causing problems.
Now, Canadian doctors are warning the public that pot edibles might not be as safe as the general public believes them to be. While it is difficult if not impossible to “overdose” on weed edibles to the point of death, negative effects like anxiety, panic attacks, and psychosis can send consumers to the hospital. Unlike smoked or vaped weed, weed edibles have less predictable effects, take far longer to set in, and resemble quotidian pastries and candies — and these three traits combined have led to many more health and safety issues with edibles than with the plain old leaf. (…)