There’s nothing quite like relaxing with a joint or a bowl, and more Americans are learning this than ever. Cannabis sales are 12% higher than they were just a year ago, and people with weed in the bloodstream are more prevalent than ever.
But how long will one hit of weed stay in your system? Read on to learn:
- THC detection time for new users
- How frequency impacts detection times
- What benefits marijuana users enjoy
- Detection windows for different drug test types
- Factors that contribute to detection
How Long Will One Hit of Weed Stay in Your System?
If you’re a first-time smoker, a marijuana drug test will detect weed for about three days.
This relatively short timeframe is because those who don’t frequently use weed won’t have a lot of it built up in their body.
A first-time user will wait between one and three hours for weed to take full effect after ingesting it. The effects will also last for another one to three hours. Smoking tends to have the shortest timeframe, while edibles have effects that last for several hours.
This rule of thumb doesn’t just apply to smokers. One edible or tincture use will have a similar THC detection time in first-time users.
Single-Hit Weed Effects
There are several great effects that you can reap with a 1-3 day detection period. Some great cannabis benefits may include:
- Decreased anxiety
- Muscle relaxation
- Creative boosts
- Better sleep
- Less inflammation
- Lower blood pressure
The impacts vary from person to person. If it’s your first time smoking weed, don’t take more than 5 milligrams right off the bat. 2.5 milligrams is ideal, and you can work your way up from there.
What About Seasoned Weed Lovers?
Just one hit of weed will stay in your system longer if you’re a more experienced smoker.
Those who smoke consistently (3-4 times weekly) won’t pass a urine marijuana drug test for five to seven days. People who smoke daily can expect tests to detect weed for a month or more.
If you used to smoke weed regularly, quit, and come back to it, you’ll start over. Single-hit weed effects will be stronger and the detection window will be shorter. This is because all the old weed from a long time ago will have left your body before you start smoking again.
How Much Do You Have to Ingest for Detection?
Whether you smoke or take edibles, any amount of weed will:
- Produce effects, even if they’re very mild
- Enter the bloodstream
- Show up on a drug test
Even just one hit of cannabis will cause drug test failure.
Those who have weed often will:
- Have cannabis accumulate in their tissues
- Eliminate metabolites slowly
- Develop a higher tolerance and need more weed for similar effects
This means longer detection periods.
The Cannabis Detection Window
People asking “how long will one hit of weed stay in your system” usually want to know for drug tests. The detection time actually varies depending on the test method:
- Blood tests – A couple of hours after use
- Saliva tests – 1-4 days after use
- Urine tests – 1-30 days after use
- Sweat tests – 7-14 days after use
- Hair tests – Up to 3 months after use, but with a lot of false positives
Urine tests are the most common among weed users. Almost all users will pass the test after a month, but most don’t need that long.
THC vs CBD Detection
THC is the compound in the cannabis plant that:
- Provides psychedelic effects
- Makes you feel ‘high’
- Produces dopamine for a euphoric feeling
- Promotes mental and physical relaxation
- Stimulates appetite
- Reduces anxiety
- May help treat chronic pain in some people
CBD doesn’t make you high. Instead, it may:
- Make cells communicate better
- Slow down signals from your nerves to your brain
- Lower brain inflammation
Only THC shows up on drug tests. CBD does not.
However, there’s more to it than that. CBD products aren’t FDA-regulated, and some might contain a small amount of THC content. Even a little bit of THC will cause drug test failure, so be careful.
Make sure to buy both THC and CBD products from a reputable dispensary. Experts will work with known brands and provide vetted, high-quality products. This keeps you safe and aware of what you’re consuming.
Can You Decrease the Detection Window?
There’s no specific proven way to get weed compounds out of your body quickly. They’ll need to break down naturally.
However, some methods could make your body break down these compounds. THC is stored in fat cells, so exercising regularly could help your body metabolize them faster.
THC is also stored in the liver and the intestines. A good diet can promote bowel movements with better digestion. This can help THC compounds leave the body as you digest food.
Drinking water can also flush weed out of your system faster sometimes. However, none of these methods are proven, tried-and-true ways to pass a drug test. Don’t count on them working when applying for a dream job.
Factors Contributing to THC Detection Time
Some weed tests are more sensitive than others. The most sensitive are:
- Blood
- Hair
- Saliva
- Urine
If you’re taking one of these tests, they’ll detect cannabis for longer than other test types. They’ll also detect extremely small quantities.
But that’s not the only factor contributing to marijuana drug test results. Your tolerance and body will also make a difference.
Dosage of THC
The amount of THC you use will impact your test a lot. This is because THC’s effects are cumulative, meaning that they stack on top of each other after it’s consumed multiple times.
If one person has THC once while the other smokes daily, the daily smoker will test positive for longer. This is because there’s more THC in their system at any given time.
Some people also consider:
- How “high” they felt
- The strength of each THC dose (though it’s hard to determine without professional lab equipment)
- How long it took them to sober up
None of these are reliable measurements of how long cannabis will show up on a test. It’s all about frequency and THC content buildup in the bloodstream and tissues.
BMI and Body Size
THC is what’s known as a “fat-soluble compound,” which means that cannabis is stored in fat cells.
Because of this, people with more fat will store cannabis for longer. THC shows up on drug tests for longer since it’s held in the body by fatty tissues.
Note that this has nothing to do with your size more generally. Large people who get their weight from muscle mass won’t store THC like this. It’s all about body fat concentrations.
Typically, women:
- Have more body fat than men
- Have smaller figures than men, which makes fat percentages higher
- Have lower muscle mass (and therefore more accurate BMI-to-fat ratios)
So, women will usually metabolize cannabis compounds more slowly than men do.
Weed Metabolism
Your metabolism is what lets your body break down and digest compounds within anything you consume. If you eat a burger, your body will:
- Break down the proteins and fats inside the burger
- Get these proteins and fats into the bloodstream
- Distribute these nutrients throughout the body
- Provide energy to cells that power your daily life
Weed metabolism is pretty much the same with compounds in cannabis.
In order for a drug test to be negative, all metabolic chemicals in THC need to leave the body. This is because the chemicals have strong links to THC. They indicate that the user consumed cannabis.
People with faster metabolisms lose THC content more quickly than those who have slow metabolisms. They’ll pass drug tests sooner.
Lifestyle Habits
Lots of people think that they’ll metabolize THC faster if they exercise more.
This isn’t proven. However, there is some evidence to suggest that exercising right before taking a weed test can change your results.
An older study from 2013 supports this, concluding that:
- THC levels slightly increase after exercise
- People who use weed regularly get a spike in THC content post-workout
- Fat cells release THC as they break down
- You’re more likely to test positive if you work out before a drug test
You also should think about how you were feeling when you consumed weed.
If you were dehydrated, you’ll have a higher concentration of THC in your body after smoking. One hit of weed might give you more cannabis compounds than three hits would if you were well-hydrated.
People who ingest weed on an empty stomach tend to get higher. However, this doesn’t mean that they ingest more THC compounds.
You can’t rely on how high you feel when determining how much THC entered your system after smoking.
Find High-Quality Cannabis Today
So, how long will one hit of weed stay in your system? It depends on several factors, but it’s usually under a week for first-time smokers.
Now that you have all the intel you need for your marijuana drug test, it’s time to get started. Sage Seed offers several items including:
- Raw/cured flower
- Pre-rolled joints
- Tinctures
- Edibles
- Topicals
Get in touch with our team to learn more about your options and place an order!
