{"componentChunkName":"component---common-build-tags-template-js","path":"/tag/coffee/","result":{"data":{"allArticle":{"edges":[{"node":{"id":"Article_2036-markdown","title":"Does Caffeine Improve Your Marijuana High?","slug":"does-caffeine-improve-your-marijuana-high","content":"For years, coffee and marijuana have gone together like Bonnie and\r\nClyde. Cannabis aficionados around the world have enjoyed sitting down\r\nfor a nice drag and a cup of joe at the same time -- believing that one\r\nwould inevitably enhance the other. So what's the connection between\r\nthese two things? Does drinking coffee actually enhance the effects of a\r\ncannabis high?\r\n\r\n**Caffeine and the Brain**\r\n\r\nCaffeine is the most popular drug in the world. Currently, [85 percent\r\nof the U.S. population](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24189158)\r\ndrinks a caffeinated beverage, such as tea, soda or coffee, every day.\r\nFound in everything from black coffee to root beer, caffeine is\r\nvirtually everywhere. What's more, people have been using the powerful\r\nstimulant for [hundreds of\r\nyears](http://www.toxipedia.org/display/toxipedia/Caffeine) to combat\r\nafternoon crashes and make waking up a little easier.\r\n\r\nContrary to what most people think, though, coffee doesn't actually\r\n*provide* energy. Instead, the chemicals found in coffee simply [block\r\nreceptors in the human\r\nbrain](http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/285194.php) from being\r\naffected by adenosine, the chemical that makes us feel tired. In this\r\nway, coffee gives the people who love it the strength to power through\r\nthe day.\r\n\r\n**Cannabis and the Brain**\r\n\r\nCannabis contains a complex system of cannabinoids, chemical compounds\r\nproduced by the cannabis flower that offer a wide array of medicinal\r\nuses. One of the most well-known cannabinoids goes by the name of\r\ntetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. THC is a psychoactive compound that bears\r\na close resemblance to anandamide, which is a naturally occurring\r\ntransmitter in the human brain. When cannabis is consumed, it interrupts\r\nthe brain's normal neural process to streamline thought and [enhance\r\ncreativity](https://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~issues/articles/18.2_Talise_J_Marijuana_1.html).\r\n\r\n**The Monkey Study**\r\n\r\nIn a [2011 study](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3115444/)\r\nconducted by a branch of the National Institutes of Health known as the\r\nIntegrative Neurobiology Section of the National Institute on Drug\r\nAbuse, squirrel monkeys were granted free access to a lever that would\r\ngive them a hit of THC when pulled. They were also given access to a\r\nlever that dispensed MSX-3, a powerful form of caffeine. At first, the\r\nmonkeys in the study mixed and matched THC with the MSX-3. As the study\r\nprogressed, however, researchers noticed that the monkeys were using the\r\nTHC lever less and less as their concentrations of MSX-3 went up. In\r\nlight of this, researchers concluded that higher levels of caffeine in\r\nthe body interacted with THC in a way that allowed monkeys to consume\r\nless THC while still enjoying the same effect.\r\n\r\nIn addition to validating the connection between coffee and cannabis\r\nthat aficionados have known about for years, the study also found that\r\nwhen the monkeys consumed large amounts of caffeine in concert with high\r\nconcentrations of THC, they experienced more addictive symptoms, making\r\nit [more difficult for them to quit\r\nTHC](http://www.medicaldaily.com/drinking-coffee-and-smoking-pot-caffeine-dosage-impacts-marijuanas-effects-337848).\r\nWhile this data is limited to findings from animal studies, it's\r\npossible that this addictive behavior may be present in humans as well.\r\n\r\n**The Outcome**\r\n\r\nCurrently, the monkey study is currently the best body of data\r\nscientists have surrounding the topic of caffeine and cannabis. From it,\r\nresearchers deduced that while the chemicals in caffeine don't actually\r\ninteract with THC to *improve* a cannabis high, they can prolong it.\r\n\r\nWhen consumed together, coffee supplements the effect cannabis has on\r\nthe brain, thus prolonging the chemical high produced by the\r\npsychoactive compounds contained in cannabis. Because cannabis and\r\ncaffeine both trigger the reward centers of the brain, consuming them in\r\nconcert can be a very pleasant experience. Cannabis users should be\r\naware, however, that while marijuana addiction is very rare, it's\r\npossible that maintaining a heavy caffeine-and-cannabis routine can make\r\nit harder to put cannabis aside down the road.\r\n\r\nAs a side note. Some people are predicting that the marijuana market in the US will reach $60B; which is about 5 times larger than the market for coffee in the US (at $11B).\r\n\r\n[Photo Credit](https://www.flickr.com/photos/lupilis/8694008393/in/photolist-efg4Nr-9HjXYk-cB9YT9-CrJLGj-jddJoG-9yZmz6-9soRP4-eoQpwC-zpb9zz-9gREcB-fFTHCY-doygR6-dX3FvQ-8bYveY-oQxenm-naooin-df7q4x-ovHESs-jPCwG6-cbsvrd-ftX57f-gPyc64-e3bumP-jt85Yw-vQmKM-7Z7cAA-9hnXzF-b9Re3D-r3fNji-jGdpjR-dBJjYL-f5GS8Y-auuNAC-gm6wjo-duwZBF-e63s1h-cKCGJw-bndTkP-bwmawk-pq8z6t-qECPTE-cAZreS-oXsSR4-m3zrMt-RJEzr-duy4cH-nNWvAm-9WdE1E-dKyz98-csyXC5)\r\n","image":{"childImageSharp":{"fluid":{"base64":"data:image/png;base64,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","aspectRatio":1.4285714285714286,"src":"/static/45673ff6da1781ee1a12100c71def50e/ee604/b7de0c4be4eeed247f0a8592fc5bf2e7.png","srcSet":"/static/45673ff6da1781ee1a12100c71def50e/69585/b7de0c4be4eeed247f0a8592fc5bf2e7.png 200w,\n/static/45673ff6da1781ee1a12100c71def50e/497c6/b7de0c4be4eeed247f0a8592fc5bf2e7.png 400w,\n/static/45673ff6da1781ee1a12100c71def50e/ee604/b7de0c4be4eeed247f0a8592fc5bf2e7.png 800w,\n/static/45673ff6da1781ee1a12100c71def50e/5ff0a/b7de0c4be4eeed247f0a8592fc5bf2e7.png 940w","srcWebp":"/static/45673ff6da1781ee1a12100c71def50e/58556/b7de0c4be4eeed247f0a8592fc5bf2e7.webp","srcSetWebp":"/static/45673ff6da1781ee1a12100c71def50e/61e93/b7de0c4be4eeed247f0a8592fc5bf2e7.webp 200w,\n/static/45673ff6da1781ee1a12100c71def50e/1f5c5/b7de0c4be4eeed247f0a8592fc5bf2e7.webp 400w,\n/static/45673ff6da1781ee1a12100c71def50e/58556/b7de0c4be4eeed247f0a8592fc5bf2e7.webp 800w,\n/static/45673ff6da1781ee1a12100c71def50e/01a89/b7de0c4be4eeed247f0a8592fc5bf2e7.webp 940w","sizes":"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px"}}}}}]}},"pageContext":{"limit":12,"skip":0,"numPages":1,"currentPage":1,"id":5129,"name":"Coffee","slug":"coffee","country":"US"}},"staticQueryHashes":["3949754563","4179947113","4202924991"]}