9 Ways to Detox From Weed

So you need a break from weed. Maybe you have a family vacation coming up and you know you won’t be able to inhale around the ‘rents. Maybe you have a drug test for a job and you really need to pass. Or maybe you’ve just had enough for now.

“Detoxing” is the process of getting weed and cannabinoids out of your system. If you just need a break from the bong, you may not feel the desperate need to detox today. But if you have a drug test tomorrow…we understand your desperation.

Use this guide to help you plan your detox, understand the detoxing process, and get marijuana out of your system without subjecting to any scam products or wasteful solutions. There are certainly a lot of scams out there that prey on desperate detox-ers, so be careful and think carefully before you buy a detox product.

How Long Does Marijuana Stay in Your System?

Have a drug test next week? You might want to stop smoking last month.

There is no one answer for how long marijuana stays in the body. The length of time marijuana stays in your system depends on how frequently you smoke. Drug tests that use saliva, hair, or urine may also detect THC for longer or shorter periods of time.

If you have a drug test coming up, try and learn what type of test you will be subjected to. Saliva tests, for example, won’t pick up on THC if you consumed it over 12 hours before the test. Hair tests can pick up on THC that you initially consumed up to three months before the test.

Let’s hope you have a saliva test coming up.

Want to learn more about how long edibles stay in your system? We’ve got a blog post for you.

What Do Detoxing Products Do?

If you’ve been Googling how to pass a drug test in 24 hours or get weed out of your system fast, you’ve probably encountered quite a few ads for detox products. Drinks, pills, regimens, you name it. You might have even seen websites advertising fake urine. Are these products worth your money? Can you stock up on detox drinks and pass any drug test that comes your way?

Don’t bet on it.

A lot of “detox products” on the market that guarantee you’ll pass a drug test within a few hours are straight baloney. (Excuse our fighting words.)

While some advertise the ability to flush THC out of your system completely, others try to direct THC to the bowels so it can’t be detected through a pee test. While some of these tests are backed by common-sense science, they still require a few days to “kick in,” and in that time, you might as well just be detoxing naturally.

Save your money and use a healthy diet and other methods to help you pass a pee test.

(And the fake urine? If you want to handle someone else’s pee for a few hours in your pocket, that’s on you.)

How Does the Body “Detox?”

Okay, so we’ve talked you down from the mountain of buying loads of fake detox products. If you still need to detox, the best way to start is to understand how the body “detoxes” naturally. The more you know about this process, the easier it will be to make decisions that aid this process and get THC out of your system as soon as possible.

Detoxing from weed isn’t much different from any other type of detox. If you want to get weed, alcohol, or yesterday’s birthday cake out of your system, you’ll have to wait for your liver to do its job.

The three-pound miracle organ, aka the liver, works tirelessly to break down the food, drink, and smoke that you put in your body. The liver separates nutrients from toxins and sends them to their appropriate places. When the liver finds toxins, it sends them out through…well, you can guess for yourself.

One of the liver’s most important jobs is to convert fat to energy when needed and sending vitamins back into the body so they can support other bodily functions. THC is stored in the fat cells of the body, so detoxing from a lot of weed can take some time while the body goes through stored fat cells. The liver will burn through recently consumed fat cells before it hits the ones that have already been stored away.

The best way to “detox” is to let your liver go through this process naturally. Even if you do drink a detox tea or pop a pill “guaranteeing” clean urine, guess where it has to go? Your liver, along with the THC that you want to detox in the first place. So skip that “detox” stuff and give your liver a helping hand.

How To Detox From Weed

What can you do to help your liver process toxins and get THC out of your system? Here’s our best advice:

Stop Smoking

It’s that easy. Quit cold turkey, at least until your detox period is over. The easiest way to get weed out of your system is to not let it in your system in the first place.

Cut Down on Smoking

When you reach for the bong after your detox, consider how frequently you want to consume cannabis. The more you smoke, the harder it will be to detox in the future. If you are worried about frequent drug tests or know that you want to do a detox again in a few weeks or months, consider cutting down. This will save you a lot of stress down the line when you’re re-Googling “how to detox from weed.”

Drink “Detox” Tea

You might be saying to yourself, “Hey! You just said I’m wasting my money by drinking detox teas!”

We’re not talking about the detox teas that celebrities advertise on social media, or the ones that are marketed to people trying to pass a drug test. Those teas will just give you a big stomach ache and an excuse for leaving an event early, if you know what we mean. All you need is a plain-old detoxing tea that you can find at the grocery store. Look for teas that promote detoxification or cleansing. They might have ingredients like:

• Lemongrass
• Ginger
• Dandelion
• Rhubarb
• Milk thistle

These aren’t magic ingredients that will flush out your system; they just promote healthy liver functions. Enjoy a cup or two of these teas throughout the tea and save yourself the strife of glamorized “detox” teas that will just make you run to the bathroom.

Drink Water

If you’re not a massive tea fan, at least remember to stay hydrated and drink water. Water will help to dilute your pee and keep your liver moving and grooving as you eliminate weed from your system. Want to “spice” up boring old water and move things along? Add a lemon slice or two.

Take B Vitamins

If you are a vegan or a vegetarian, you probably know a thing or two about B vitamins. They are highly present in animal products, but scarcely found in leafy greens and other plants. Nutritionists often encourage vegetarians and vegans to take B vitamin supplements.

A funny thing happens when you take a B vitamin supplement. Most of these supplements offer more than the recommended daily amount of B vitamins. These vitamins are water-soluble, which means after your body takes what it needs from the B vitamin supplements, it puts the remaining vitamins in your urine. Vegetarians and vegans have all experienced freaking out over a bright yellow pee until they realize that it’s just leftovers from their B vitamin supplement. The vitamins dilute the pee, changing its color.

See where we’re going with this? You don’t need a fancy detox supplement to change your urine’s contents and give yourself a better chance at passing a drug test. Just head over to the local pharmacy and grab some B vitamins. Your pee will still look yellow when you take the drug test, but it will contain a higher amount of vitamins than usual, making it harder for the tests to detect THC. Plus, B vitamins are great for you. If you are a vegetarian or vegan, consider this benefit of B vitamins an added bonus.

Eat a Healthy Diet

Carrots help your eyes function. Fish high in omega-3s help your heart function. But right now, we’re focused on the liver. Consuming a liver-friendly diet will help move the detox process along and keep your liver happy.

What does a liver-friendly diet look like, exactly?

• A cup of coffee (drinking coffee in moderation is great for liver health!)
• A grapefruit with breakfast
• A smoothie containing cranberries, blueberries, grapes, or beetroot juice (all fantastic for the liver!)
• A dinner with Brussels sprouts, broccoli and mustard greens on the side
• Fatty fish made with olive oil
• A handful of nuts here and there as a snack

See, this won’t be too hard! These foods won’t make your liver perform any faster, but it will encourage the liver to work hard and stay healthy as it breaks down and processes the THC in your system.

If you want to hit your body with a one-two punch of health, consider eating foods that are high in fiber. Fiber encourages digestion, moving the foods and substances in your body along at a healthy pace. Some high-fiber foods include:

• Avocado
• Almonds
• Beetroot
• Broccoli
• Brussel sprouts
• Chickpeas
• Chia Seeds
• Grains, cereals, and bread
• Nuts
• Oats

It’s nice to see that some of these foods fit into both categories. Load up on those Brussel sprouts and keep a bag of almonds nearby for a snack!

Hit the Gym

While you’re on this health kick, it’s time to get in shape!

Remember how we mentioned that THC is stored in the fat cells of the body? If you want your liver to process these cells and eliminate THC sooner, it’s time to burn some fat. Hitting the gym will help you get rid of stored fat and boost your metabolism.

Metabolism is a term that generally defines the functions of the body. If you have a high metabolism, your liver will break down fats and other substances faster. People with high metabolism can detox faster than others. Your healthy diet of Brussel sprouts and almonds will also help to boost your metabolism and encourage a speedy detox.

There is a lot of back-and-forth debates about whether or not sweat releases toxins from the body. Your liver and kidneys certainly do a better job of taking out toxins than sweat does, but releasing water and rehydrating certainly doesn’t hurt.

Hit the Sauna

Want to sweat without getting off of your butt? Hit the sauna. You can still enjoy the benefits of sweating without, you know, doing anything. Just remember to stay hydrated before and after you go to the sauna. Load up on electrolytes and water to prevent yourself from overheating. It’s very easy to overdo trips to the sauna, so limit yourself to a special sauna trip once or twice a week.

Keep Your Mental Health In Check

If you are a regular weed smoker, a detox can feel a little unnerving. While there is little evidence to say that people can be physically addicted to weed, many argue that a psychological addiction to weed may develop. Humans can be psychologically addicted to anything: gambling, coffee, their morning run, etc. Even if you don’t get a headache or shaky from abstaining, you might feel anxious in the first few days of your detox.

Pay attention to your mental health as you detox. Even if you take our advice and consume a healthy diet with plenty of exercise, you may start to feel a little bummed out. Take some time for yoga, meditation, or fun activities that take your mind off of the fact that you’re detoxing. Self-care will help you navigate smoking and not smoking with ease.