Does Vitamin C Lower Marijuana Tolerance?
Article written by
Shanti RyleContent Writer
Content reviewed by
Dr. Lewis JasseyMedical Director - Pediatric Medicine
Take a quick look on social media sites like Reddit and TikTok, and you’ll read reports claiming that vitamin C can lower marijuana tolerance and provide users with an even more powerful high. Despite trending news to the contrary, there is no scientific evidence to suggest that vitamin C supplements mixed with cannabis can impact its psychoactivity, whether to enhance or subdue it.
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Origins
Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) got its reputation for lowering cannabis tolerance thanks to social media trends. TikTok’s “vitamin C challenge” involved users drinking one or two packets of Emergen-C mixed with water a half hour before consuming cannabis. They reportedly described the experience as the “ultimate high.”
No scientific evidence has identified any metabolic impact of vitamin C supplementation on THC or other cannabinoids. One small study in 2020 found that vitamin C increases THC’s effect on sperm motility in rats, but this is a far cry from claiming that vitamin C boosts euphoria.
It’s more likely that all the claims on social media are more placebo effect — the people creating the videos and doing the challenge want to think that vitamin C helps boost their high, so they believe it works.
How Vitamin C Interacts with Cannabis
No evidence or research suggests vitamin C interacts with marijuana whatsoever. However, there may be some reason why people act on this misconception, having to do with the so-called grapefruit effect.
Grapefruit and CBD share a commonality: they both impact the activity of enzymes in the digestive system involved with breaking down certain drugs or medications in the body. The drug stays in your system, and if too much remains for too long, it can cause the medicine to have more side effects. Because vitamin C is commonly found in citrus fruit, this may be where the misunderstanding first occurred.
However, there is no downside to taking cannabis and vitamin C together. Vitamin C is good for you and supports healthy immune function and other benefits. You might experience nausea, diarrhea, and heartburn if you consume high doses of vitamin C, but not much more.
Alternative Ways to Reduce Marijuana Tolerance
If you’re trying to reduce your marijuana tolerance, there are alternative steps you can take.
Tolerance breaks (or t-breaks) allow your body to take a brief respite from cannabis use and reset its endocannabinoid system (ECS). Research suggests that most cannabis users return to baseline tolerance after 48 hours of stopping use, so three days should be enough to see improved tolerance levels.
Switching to a consumption method that allows you to dose your marijuana more precisely can also prevent you from overdoing it on THC and overloading your system. Tinctures, capsules, or serving-sized edibles from dispensaries serve this purpose well.
If you consume marijuana multiple times a day, you can also try cutting back your daily sessions to slowly wean yourself off of over-frequent use. CBD is also a cannabinoid receptor antagonist that can help mitigate your body from taking in too much THC, thus protecting your CB1 receptors and keeping tolerance levels steady.
The Bottom Line: Does Vitamin C Help Lower Tolerance?
Simply put, no, it doesn’t. If you want to lower your cannabis tolerance, try the above methods, but understand that consuming vitamin C is good for you and won’t impact your high.
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