The health benefits of cannabis tea can range from mild, to amazing, and as far as the full range of benefits, the truth is, we’re not really sure yet. The legal issues surrounding studying cannabis tea (and other cannabis-based treatments) are still present in many states and countries. Let’s hope that these legal hurdles get cleared up at an amazing pace, which can only be accomplished by supporting the cause and voicing your opinion. Anyways, let’s dive into cannabis tea!

Everyone knows that tea is good for you. Tea is full of antioxidants, helpful towards hydration, and low in calories (most teas contain zero calories, but depending on whether the drinker wants to add milk or sugar in it, that number could change). Besides tea leaves and (sometimes) flowers that are usually used to brew this drink, different cultures and people have used psychedelics in their teas to deliver the hallucinogen in a more appetizing manner. Psilocybin and ayahuasca have been brewed into teas in order to deliver the psychedelic components of mushrooms and DMT without (some of) the bitter taste. Marijuana has been brewed into teas as well – and it turns out that it might even be good for you.

According to an article by Ryan Hurd posted on livestrong.com, cannabis tea does have health benefits – some of which are predictable, and others that are not. Like smoking marijuana, drinking the tea may relieve anxiety while reducing nausea and chronic pain. Unlike smoking marijuana, the tea is not inhaled through the lungs and thus does not contain the risk of developing long-term lung problems, like emphysema.

Surprisingly, cannabis tea (along with marijuana itself) may help treat autoimmune diseases. According to Paul Armentano, an advocate for the reformation of marijuana laws, there is research that shows that symptoms of diseases like multiple sclerosis and irritable bowel syndrome may be lessened or gotten rid of completely. In fact, the famous Youtuber, known popularly as Shoenice, claims that since smoking marijuana daily, he has completely gotten rid of the symptoms of the painful Chrohn’s disease that he suffered from previously. Chrohn’s disease includes symptoms such as persistent diarrhea and rectal bleeding, coupled with abdominal pain and cramping. I’d rather smoke weed than bleed from my rectum and have diarrhea all day, but maybe that’s just personal preference.

Armentano might have been onto something – so why haven’t these studies been released to the public? It is hard to do research on the benefits of marijuana without running into major roadblocks, but I hope that more studies can get done and patients may find some relief from these symptoms. So, with these benefits, how does one make cannabis tea?

How to Make Cannabis Tea

Conveniently, Wikihow has a page for just that. (I feel like something with the title, How to Kill your Boss in Ten Easy Steps, will appear there one day. The front page of the website does say that they want to help everyone – well what if I’m a serial killer in a predicament with my employer, but I digress.)

The tea is made pretty much the same as any other tea would be made. If you brew your own tea from scratch (meaning you use loose-leaf tea in a tea brewer, not the tea bags), you probably already know how to make this. However, there are a few additional steps – one includes adding butter, in order to extract the THC properly. So here is a comprehensive list of the steps-

1. Grind up a half gram of marijuana.

2. Put about 3 cups of water on to boil.

3. Add two tablespoons of butter to the boiling water.

4. Add in your weed (this differs from tea making – no need to strain, just put it directly in).

5. Keep the stove on high heat and stir constantly for 30-40 minutes.

6. Run the tea through a strainer and – voila!

7. You can keep the tea as is, or add in other tea you have, to taste.

8. Drink and prepare to feel very stoned as it is ingested orally and will, therefore, digest longer (like an edible, it will take 45 minutes to an hour, for the tea to take complete effect).

Happy tea making!