Vaporising: Consuming cannabis in this way looks very similar to smoking, but there are several differences. Vaporisers release the chemical compounds in cannabis at a lower temperature than smoking. Vaporising is less harsh for the lungs than smoking rolled cannabis is and you won’t have to deal with wearing the cannabis scent for the day. Portable vapes can be extremely convenient for patients who are on-the-go. 

Tinctures and Oils: Tinctures and oils are fast becoming the most socially acceptable and convenient way to medicate and are usually the preferred method of treatment for many cancer patients. This method involves placing a few drops under the tongue and swallowing. The most incredible part of this method is that even before you swallow cannabis enters your blood stream through a large number of blood vessels under your tongue. Tinctures are also a very appealing choice for novice users of medicinal cannabis, one of the main reasons being is that the dosage can be easily modified to suit each patient. This form of medicinal cannabis makes it very easy for Doctors to dose accurately, usually only one-two millilitres are needed under the tongue using the small eye-dropper. The downside of tinctures and oils is that they can be very expensive to use over a period of time, especially if patients need high doses and a lot of people struggle financially to keep up with a consistent supply.

Topicals: Topical cannabis is popular in use as it does not produce any psychoactive effects. They are developed by combining cannabinoids with a penetrating topical cream that can enter the skin and body tissues. Topicals are great for localised pain relief as they allow for direct application to affected areas and can provide fast relief from allergic skin reactions, muscle strain and inflammation.

Transdermal Patches: Patches are becoming more commonly used as a delivery system for medicinal cannabis. The patch itself sits on the body, usually on the inner portion of the wrist or the top of the ankle and delivers a time-released dose of medicinal cannabis over a long period. Transdermal patches, unlike topicals, deliver the active ingredients right into your bloodstream, so that pain relief can be felt throughout your body, which means they work best for general, not localised, pain relief.

Edibles: Edibles wont be introduced into New Zealand for quite some time, but we’ve included them here as they are a very popular method of ingesting. Edibles are a slower but very effective delivery method for medicinal cannabis. Patients usually report feeling the effects within thirty minutes with total duration of effects lasting up to six hours. The reason why edibles affect you for a longer period of time is attributed to the process of digestion. Once ingested, edibles are broken down from their original state to a molecular cannabinoid state before entering the bloodstream and making their way to the brain. The most popular ways of consuming edibles still to this day include cake and cookies as they are enjoyable to eat and easy to infuse. But overseas medicinal cannabis has been successfully infused into a variety of foods and beverages including ice cream, coffee and condiments. 

Capsules: Patients often opt for capsules over other products as capsules offer both a familiar and convenient method of ingesting. Capsules also provide patients with an exact dose which delivers consistent effects and takes away any confusion one might have about dosing. Medicinal cannabis capsules are ingested and metabolised in a similar way to edibles, traveling through the digestive system, the cannabinoid is metabolised by the liver and directed into the bloodstream.