Vaporized cannabis e-liquid produces stronger effects and higher blood THC levels when mixed with polyethylene glycol 400 (PEG) rather than propylene glycol/vegetable glycerin (PG/VG). In mice, the highest dose tested caused body temperature drops, pain relief, and reduced movement. Adolescents were less sensitive than adults to the movement-suppressing effects, possibly due to lower circulating THC. No sex differences appeared in behavioral responses, but female mice showed slower THC metabolism than males, suggesting sex differences in how cannabis is broken down.
Acute cannabis use broadly impairs multiple memory domains, not just verbal memory. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, 120 cannabis users vaporized flower containing 0 mg, 20 mg, or 40 mg THC before completing memory tests. Cannabis increased false memories and harmed verbal memory (immediate, delayed, working), visuospatial memory (immediate, delayed), event-cued prospective memory, source memory, and temporal order memory. No significant differences emerged between the moderate and high doses. This is the first study to detect acute cannabis effects on prospective and temporal order memory, domains that better reflect everyday functioning.
Cannabis vapor inhalation acutely increases food intake in both humans and rats, an effect driven by central cannabinoid 1 receptors. In humans, energy intake rose within the first 30 minutes of snack access, regardless of dose or gender, without altering the proportion of macronutrients consumed. In rats, cannabis vapor reduced the time to start eating and increased the number of feeding bouts, overriding homeostatic appetite regulation by boosting motivation to eat and reducing food reward devaluation. These feeding effects were not accompanied by changes in circulating appetite-associated hormones, and they depended on central, not peripheral, CB1 receptors.