Thanksgiving Dinner And Cannabis: 5 Benefits Of Including Weed, From Anxiety To Digestion

With one of America’s favorite eating holidays upon us, there are those who might find the family dynamics of this occasion to be stressful, whether one is the cook, the host or the dinner guest.

This Thanksgiving, with the world engulfed in painful conflicts and our nation bitterly divided over who should occupy the White House next year, cross-table debates might be unavoidable, which could exacerbate digestive events after multiple servings of turkey, pumpkin pie or your aunt’s homemade cranberry sauce.

However, if you are fortunate enough to have legal access to cannabis, you’re in luck.

Here are five scientific reasons to take a little hit on Thanksgiving.

Weed Stimulates The Appetite

Yes, munchies are real. 

Studies have shown that increased appetite experienced after smoking is related to marijuana’s effect on your sense of smell, often translating into acute hunger because smell and taste are related. “The ability of Cannabis sativa to promote eating has been documented for many centuries,” per a study conducted at the University of Liverpool, which noted that cannabis promotes “h2 cravings for, and an intensification of the sensory and hedonic properties of food.”

Help With Digestive Disorders

Cannabis protects the stomach lining, according to a 2020 study published by the University of Michigan.

After the above sativa-induced enjoyment, cannabis “exerts biological functions on the gastrointestinal tract…and has been used for the treatment of GI disorders such as abdominal pain," according to additional research.

Anxiety Reduction

When you are under stress, your brain may release its own cannabinoid molecules to calm you down, activating the same brain receptors as THC, say Northwestern University researchers. 

An international study at Vanderbilt University, however, noted that when we encounter too much stress, our body’s natural cannabinoid levels may not be sufficient to prevent debilitating anxiety, explaining why people tend to seek a little help to boost those levels.

Love Hormone

Oxytocin, known as the '"love hormone" is associated with interpersonal bonding and may enhance the pleasure of social interactions by stimulating the production of marijuana-like neurotransmitters in the brain, found the University of California, Irvine.

This could prove to be essential when dealing with relatives you would not normally tolerate for a non-stoned second, let alone a lengthy meal.

Drive Home Safely

Many researchers concur that cannabis is safer than alcohol when it comes to driving a car, although neither is really recommended.

Yet, the U.S. Dept of Transportation concluded that marijuana is about as safe as driving while sober once variables are adjusted for. This is especially important for the more than 55 million people who will drive over Thanksgiving weekend, which AAA says is expected to be the busiest travel period in several years.

So, this Thanksgiving, have a few helpful tokes to take off the edge, awaken the appetite and then get home safely. 

Benzinga edit with images by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels and OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay