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I'm assuming good ol' mary jane is pretty paleo. I go through periods of smoking it and then not, just a puff at night/ before bed, it helps me sleep. Other than a possible case of "the munchies", how does it affect fat loss? Does it slow down my metabolism? If so, is it significant enough to avoid? What has been your experience?

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 Use by "ancient" or "primitive" cultures doesn't really justify it as paleo, and even so, and evolutionary adaptation would really only affect the people that were exposed to it, and in this case, people living in India during this time period, and their descendants. – Bristlebeard Apr 25 2011 at 14:47
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 A couple of related posts by Dr. Emily Deans, my new favorite blog. evolutionarypsychiatry.blogspot.com/2011/04/… & evolutionarypsychiatry.blogspot.com/2011/04/… – Dave S. Apr 25 2011 at 15:00
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 Clearly you want to do this, so go ahead. But why the need to label it Paleo??? Good grief. – Lee Apr 26 2011 at 3:18
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 It seems, despite being adults and "thinking with our own head", we still can't have a serious debate about drugs. – Ikco Apr 26 2011 at 8:12
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 That's because we have to undo so much cultural conditioning. It's not easy without the help of the psychedelic plants that paleo men used. – justanotherhunt Apr 26 2011 at 17:13
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20 Answers

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The use of psychedelic drugs is nearly ubiquitous among indigenous peoples worldwide. What was also ubiquitous was that use was grounded in cultural traditions of healing, worship, and community.

My point is that the context is as important as the content.

The same substance, whether it is pot or sugar can be consumed responsibly by some, while others, due to heredity, environment, or trauma are drawn into addictions.

Outside of emotional, legal, or political perspectives, the actual plant, cannabis sativa, is essentially harmless. The LD-50 (dose required to kill 50% of lab animals) is so high that it is essentially impossible to overdose. It is much easier to overdose on coffee than it is on cannabis.

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 Just for giggles: schizophrenia.com/prevention/streetdrugs.html – Atkins-witha-loincloth Aug 14 2011 at 6:31
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 Correlation does not equal causation. I'm sure that 100% of people who have developed brain tumors have at some point picked their nose. Does that mean nose picking causes brain tumors? Additionally, I don't believe that children (anyone under 21 in my book) should use psychoactive drugs in general. However, of the hundreds of people that I personally know who smoked copious amounts of marijuana as teenagers not one has developed schizophrenia. IF smoking marijuana is a causal factor in a small number of genetically predisposed people it is not reason enough to claim that... – FED at LiveCaveman.com Aug 14 2011 at 14:41
...the substance is inherently harmful. This is the same "possible collective good" argument that is used to justify the widespread prescription of dangerous cholesterol-lowering statin drugs, for the attack on dietary salt due to the mild blood pressure lowering effect, and for the vilification of dietary fat and cholesterol in general. And, just for giggles: druglibrary.org/schaffer/library/mj_overdose.htm – FED at LiveCaveman.com Aug 14 2011 at 14:50
Maybe that is why they are indigenous. Although we can learn a lot from them, they are still a bunch of losers. – bachcole Jul 3 at 3:03
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 Wow, indigenous people are "still a bunch of losers"? That statement is ignorant on so many levels. I suggest coming down from your high horse and reading "Guns, Germs, & Steel" by Jared Diamond to get some perspective on how "we" became "winners". – FED at LiveCaveman.com Jul 3 at 16:29
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If you want to smoke it, then just smoke it. Please quit justifying it as paleo - you will end up making us look more crazy than we are portrayed in the media.

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 So we are supposed to "BEHAVE" because we might make a bad impression on the media. Wow. What's next? Do we have to take a vow that we are all White, Christian Heterosexuals so that we can make the media think we are "normal"? – Thomas Seay Apr 25 2011 at 17:59
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 Thomas, you clearly didn't read the answer properly, mth didn't ask you to stop smoking it, or behave, just to stop portraying it as paleo. Because it's not. – Carly Apr 25 2011 at 18:03
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 I was obviously stoned when I wrote that so what do you expect! – Thomas Seay Apr 25 2011 at 23:38
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 My answer was short because I was pressed for time, but I don't care if anyone smokes weed or does any other thing that is illegal as long as it does not affect me or my family. I also believe drugs should be legalized. My point was if you want to do something, then just do it. Don't look for an online community to justify your actions. Secondly, calling smoking marijuana paleo brings bigger issues instead of diet and health. I liken this to the paleo 2.0/archevore name change because too many things get lumped into the paleo lifestyle. Sorry I offended some. – mth Apr 26 2011 at 22:11
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 People look for justification for their actions here all of the time: should I eat this; am I exercising too much or not enough; did I get the right blood tests; hack my food log; etc. Why is a question about marijuana any different? Can the question be answered here without a moral judgement being made based on current mores? I'm not promoting its use. My thinking is this: Let's be careful to judge what is or is not "paleo". We have no idea of the cultural variations 30,000 years ago. Do want to become as dogmatic as militant vegans, easily combustible fuel for media caricatures? – Chickenosaurus Rex Apr 27 2011 at 15:41
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Marijuana kills cancer cells

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2673842/?tool=pmcentrez

It will stop cancer growth

http://www.webmd.com/cancer/brain-cancer/news/20090401/marijuana-chemical-may-fight-brain-cancer

Stop tumors

http://www.webmd.com/lung-cancer/news/20070417/marijuana-may-fight-lung-tumors

It helps ADHD

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1521-0391.2010.00076.x/abstract

http://psychcentral.com/lib/2010/adhd-and-marijuana/

Warning PDF http://mcforadhd.free.fr/ARTICLE%20ADHD%20DRIVING%20GERMANY.pdf

Some argue that it is an athletic performance enhancer

http://www.popsci.com/scitech/article/2009-02/pot-performance-enhancer

It fights inflammation

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070607171120.htm

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/feature/id/59872/title/Not_just_a_high

It can increase brain cell growth

http://www.peak.sfu.ca/the-peak/2005-3/issue9/ne-mj.html

Final bonus link. 3,000 year old Caucasian mummies found in Chinese desert with bags of marijuana. (I know this doesnt make it Paleo but its an interesting story) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28034925/ns/technology_and_science-science/

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 Geoff, you could easily find as many, if not more, studies showing the detrimental effects. – Carly Apr 25 2011 at 18:32
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 You can also find just as many studies linking high fat diets and meat consumption as having detrimental effects. Those studies like the negative marijuana studies have been shown to be bad science with a political agenda. Also just like eating the fat and meat of conventionally grown animals can indeed be bad for you, smoking marijuana can also be bad. Good thing there is organic meat and vaporizers and edible cannabis. – Geoff Apr 25 2011 at 18:42
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 "Those studies like the negative marijuana studies have been shown to be bad science with a political agenda" massively generalised sweeping statement. My cousin delveloped severe mental illness because of cannabis, it gave me an anxiety disorder I still haven't managed to entirely shake off, I know a doctor who has lost count of the amount of young people's lives that have been destroyed by mental illness because of cannabis use, and that's not even starting on the detrimental affects of the smoke in the lungs, you are kidding yourself if you think it's healthy. – Carly Apr 25 2011 at 18:50
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 Wouldn't it be difficult to say that mental illness is caused by marijuana use? With so many confounding factors (diet, for example), and the possibility that those already suffering from mental distress might be more drawn to/open to drug use as a way of medicating themselves? My own anxiety disorder has been much improved with the help of occasional, very intentional (ie not at parties, or mixed with other drugs) use of marijuana. – Ruby Apr 26 2011 at 19:14
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 You say that but towards the end of my ten year usage I would literally have a panic attack EVERYTIME I sparked up. Directly correlated. I get that's n=1 but you are naive to think a MIND ALTERING SUBSTANCE won't affect YOUR MIND. Think about it. – Carly Oct 26 2011 at 9:38
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Adding smoke to the lungs will never be good for any kind of result, we are not designed to breathe smoke. We are not built to eat grain. Our system is not made to digest sugars. Paleo is Paleo due to a concept based on fact and science, not to be trendy.

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 Really? If I recall correctly we are so good at digesting sugar we can break complex molecules of "sugars" down. We can even break down protein to sugar if needed. What about camp fires? – Edward J. Edmonds Jun 24 2011 at 9:02
"With visible breath I pray." Do a google search on that. Pretty damn paleo if you ask me. – Cody Oct 26 2011 at 1:00
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 Use a vaporizer silly! – Bill1102inf Dec 13 2011 at 4:27
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Of course it isn't "paleo", what ever that actually is, nor is it healthy, no matter how you dress it up or how many tribes you an find that may or may not have smoked it. If you wanty to minimise the harmful affects on your lungs you can use a vaporiser (Robb Wolf talked about this a couple of podcasts back) but it is still harmful, unhealthy and not paleo. I used to smoke it myself so I'm not judging anybody I just think it's silly to try and pretend it's not harmful.

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Ancient man smoked/smokes all kinds of substances to talk to their gods. You can't get much more paleo than that, and every thing we put into our bodies is harmful to some degree or another. Are you going to stop putting everything into your body??? – Cody Oct 26 2011 at 1:03
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 Oh dear. Yes ok then, it's good for you because "ancient man" smoked it. You go smoke as much as you want then on that philosophy and I'll carry on making my descisions based on SCIENCE. – Carly Oct 26 2011 at 9:32
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Paleo for me is what optimizes me........pot is far from it. It also has some of the highest levels of omega 6 content of any plant just like hemp. Major pass. Just because it was used then does make it paleo. This kinda of stuff has to be self evident..

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 If eaten though, in the small amounts that it takes to get you high, how much Omega 6 would you take in? Not much, methinks. – Thomas Seay Apr 25 2011 at 14:24
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 Let's see. There is around 28 grams to an ounce. Nowadays, one usually buys an 1/8 of an ounce, which comes out to 3.54 grams. Now, an eight usually lasts me (if smoking alone) a pretty good time. However, let's say I take .5 grams per sitting. How much Omega-6 is there in that much pot? I am going to guess, not much. Next time I'm passing the bong, I will pass around my bottle of fish oil just to make up for the huge damage that omega-6 is going to do me :) – Thomas Seay Apr 25 2011 at 17:16
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 Omega 6 is absorbed through smoke? Am I missing something? – justanotherhunt Apr 25 2011 at 17:31
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 You don't get any fats from inhaling smoke, let alone substantial levels of omega 6. Drinking hemp oil, on the other hand... – Kamal♦ Apr 25 2011 at 18:35
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 I'm no expert, but lung disease doesn't seem to be a necessary result of pot usage. Plus you can eat brownies and avoid the lung issues. Mental illness rates probably don't approach that related to alcohol, and the relationship is highly confounded. Do you have bad experiences with pot, Carly? I don't have much experience at all, but many many people use it for medicinal purposes. Pot works better than the leading drug in a couple therapeutic classes, and it seems the only things holding back greater adoption is stigma, big pharma, and the government. – Kamal♦ Apr 25 2011 at 18:47
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First of all, stop talking about the smoke factor. I am pretty sure that Paleos had their marijuana as edibles (possibly brownies :). Chronic smoking of marijuana may not be healthy. However, it does not follow that if x=100 is bad that x = 10 is also bad. Dosage is EVERYTHING and the field of hormesis seems to be making that point. However, there is another factor: MANY people have had revelations using entheogens like psilocbyin mushrooms and ayahuasca and even marijuana (check out the late Carl Sagan's insistence about his revelations with marijuana). Of course, I can't prove it, but I would think that quite possible Paleo man may have had similar revelations that would have positively impacted his evolution. Terence McKenna wrote a book on this, called "The Food of the Gods". Of course, we needn't speculate about the past. I think a study of how ayahuasca has been used by the indigenous peoples in the Amazonian rainforests would make this point.

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 As for the second question, since Paleos probably gnawed on bones when they got the munchies, it probably didn't alter their body fat. Eating a bag of Doritos would have a different effect though :) – Thomas Seay Apr 25 2011 at 14:25
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 And even if it has ZERO "BENEFITS" to the SERIOUS WORLD, smoking marijuana every now and then is just plain old fun. And fun is something I want to have. "Puritanism is the terrible suspicion that somebody, somewhere might be having fun." – Thomas Seay Apr 25 2011 at 14:31
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 +1 for Carl Sagan ! "We were hunters and foragers, the frontier was everywhere..." youtube.com/watch?v=oY59wZdCDo0 – Geoff Apr 25 2011 at 21:34
somebody listens to Joe Rogan. my bro is obsessed w/ it. its pretty funny at time, I admit – henrydrn Aug 30 at 6:48
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about drug use:

from Wikipedia

During the Paleolithic, there is ample evidence of drug use as seen by preserved botanical remains and coprolites. Some scholars suggest that the Shanidar Cave (a Paleolithic site in Iraq) Flower Burial shows evidence of a shamanic death ritual, but these claims are still being debated. The most direct evidence we have from the Paleolithic in terms of art comes from Tassili, Algeria. From this region, there are several therianthropic images portraying the painter and the animals around him as one (an often cited effect of many hallucinatory drugs, Ego death). One image, in particular, shows a man who has formed into one common form with a mushroom. There are several Paleolithic sites that display therianthropic imagery. However, there is some debate as to whether or not sites like Lascaux or Chauvet were entheogenically inspired.

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 This doesn't answer the question at all. – Todd Apr 26 2011 at 17:10
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 Um, I disagree. It is suggestive of drug use during the paleolithic, of which I have no doubt. And besides that, it was interesting, which is sometimes more important than directly answering questions. – Dave S. May 2 2011 at 23:05
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This is purely from personal experience, but I find cannabis to be a nice alternative to anti-pain and anti-anxiety medications (recovering from a stress-fracture now), and so far it is the ONLY substance that relieves GI-stress associated with accidental gluten exposure. I've tried ginger, peppermint, etc. I find I can get the GI effects from a single puff—definitely not enough to produce a high. Probably not so good for the lungs, but vaporizers and edibles are definitely other options.

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 I didn't realize that other folks smoked marijuana to help with GI issues. For a long time I smoked daily because it was the only thing that I found that kept me regular. Eventually I realized I had celiac disease, cut gluten out, and then cut my marijuana usage down to just occasional, recreational use. – harms.20 Aug 14 2011 at 15:51
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 I'm celiac as well, and MJ has been a godsend. I find I don't even like it as much recreation-wise these days, but as a medical tool its probably the safest substance I've used to combat my lingering GI issues. – Lauren Aug 14 2011 at 20:40
cannabis cures stomach discomfort very well, especially stomach discomfort caused by eating junk high on cannabis the night before! but seriously i find it does help digestive issues really well, vaporizing is better than smoking but still not best, edibles are great & you can't use them daily so no addiction potential like the ease of smoking/vaping – RA Apr 15 at 19:41
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Ill enjoy my weed paleo or not! It is relaxing and now on paleo I'm not even that prone to munchidom - there's always the moral debate - but I'll stick with it - til I can't - at 64 - that time may not be so far off - it isn't addictive - and I find meditation pleasant on it - I did get munchies once and the 1/2 avacado w. a can of sardines never tasted so good! :)

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I'm suprised at the question. Some ancient cultures practiced genocide does that make it ok? I was just reading today somewhere about our need to anesthesize our minds. Why? And I am guilty. I am drinking a beer right now after a long day. But no it is definately not paleo, is definately not good for me. My body does not even want it...my mind does. Also read today how modern medicine separates the mind from the body. This is a big error. And I suddenly remembered, I started making ice cubes, which I never use and as of tomorrow........my new treat for spoiling myself will be a tall glass of water with ice cubes and lemon, maybe some fresh mint. It is all in the mind !!!!!!!!!!! Maybe I should buy a new glass...why do we need to dull our senses? I'm sure our paleo friends of way back had plenty of defects.......no reason to take those on as well.

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 ouch! - sounds a wee bit judgmental to me! – semirade Apr 25 2011 at 16:51
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 Well, you are right that we shouldn't "ape" H-G culture. So whether or not, marijuana is Paleo is sort of beside the question. However, I beg to differ with you on the question as to whether it is healthy or not. Many things that are healthy in moderation become unhealthy when done in excess. The weight-training I do benefits me at 3 times a week of 45-60 minute sessions. Let's say I start to train 4 hours every day. In that case, it will probably do me a lot of harm. – Thomas Seay Apr 25 2011 at 17:02
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 Daily use for a decade doesn't sound like moderation to me. I'm not sure your difficulty with cannabis applies to Thomas' situation. – Erik Cisler Apr 25 2011 at 18:31
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 Carly, don't project what was obviously an addiction on other people. If somebody takes a glass of wine every now and then, it doesn't make them an alcoholic. If somebody takes a bong hit every now and then, it doesn't make them a marijuana addict. I smoke about once a week, FYI. – Thomas Seay Apr 25 2011 at 23:43
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 @Thomas, hear, hear! – Mei-ling May 29 2011 at 16:18
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I find it interesting that people are so accepting of those who still drink alcohol, but they are all ready to judge you for smoking pot. As far as weight loss, I wouldn't think it would be that conducive to weight loss since it tends to stimulate your appetite.

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I see nothing wrong with an occasional glass of wine, or partaking of a little weed. Every couple months I unwind with a bowl. Is it bad for you? Probably, but so is being wound to tight. I think the benefits of being that relaxed for a short time probably outweigh the negatives.

If primitive cultures didn't use weed then they used something similar. after all they didn't have prohibition to tell them all the horrible things you'll do while on weed...so it wasn't likely as taboo :)

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Let's all just chill out here and spark up a doobie. Over here there's hash (Morocco) wanna start analyzing that?

Ha!

Peace and Love...

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I use edible marijuana products as a pain reliever (if you get the butter you can make Paleo friendly edibles yourself). I used to smoke it all the time, but when i quit smoking cigarettes, I could no longer smoke weed without the association. I agree with some of the other answers, it's all about dosage. Obviously it's not part of my everyday diet and I don't have much when I do eat it. But I have to believe it's far better for me than the pain relievers (Vicodin, Ibuprofen) and anti-anxiety medications (Valium) the doctors push on me. I do get the munchies, though, so I have to be careful. It makes me a little more likely to have a "treat" if it's around me at the time. It's not a great tool for weight loss, but I would say it's a fairly "Paleo" type of medication if you use it correctly.

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When I was younger I did A LOT of drugs. But nowadays I am just not down with drugs, I really like being 100% clear minded and in control at all times. I feel really happy with sobriety, it has helped me better myself in many ways.

Although I believe in free will and say to each his/her own, if someone wants to smoke then so be it. Drugs are not for me.

As far as "pot being paleo" I am sure it's been used since it was discovered and well it has it's pros and cons as with just about everything else. So a person must make up their own mind on this subject.

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Straight up from my health course:

Marijuana

Behavioral Effects: relaxed mood, heightened sensitivity to music, food cravings, impairment of short-term memory, overestimation of time, and inability to maintain attention to a task

Additional Info:

  • Over-use may lead to Motivational syndrome - basically, you don't want to do anything. That's gotta be good ...
  • 400 chemicals linked to lung cancer
  • Leads to damage of immune system and reproductive system
  • High rate of birth defects among children who's mothers smoked marijuana during pregnancy.

By saying 'a puff at night' sometimes, it doesn't seem like you are taking in large doses. However, over time, the negative effects build up.

A paleolithic Homo sapien did not chill out smoking weed, the would have gotten eaten. Smoke it if you want, but I wouldn't recommend it - there are better ways to aide sleep and reap the "positive" benefits of using marijuana, and they don't have the list of ailments I mentioned above.

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 Well Allie, what does your health course say about saturated fat ? ;) – Ikco Apr 26 2011 at 7:44
:) True Ikco. I did note that it was 'straight up from my health course' with reason, however, I do not think that everything CW claims is false. I have not done any thorough research on marijuana, perhaps I will do so in the future, but I stand by what I said: there are better ways to aide sleep and reap the "positive" benefits of using marijuana, and they don't have the list of ailments I mentioned above. – Allie Apr 26 2011 at 11:47
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 Allie, I think sceptism is essential, CW or not but in case of drugs, well let us just say it's saturated fats *100 (doing MDMA research then injecting methamphetamine, LSD chromosome damage, etc). I'm not saying things aren't true but I sense some bad science in "Additional info". It it cannabis per se or smoke or even tobacco smoke ? So yeah, sceptic always ;) – Ikco Apr 26 2011 at 18:44
Haha, so I got down-voted twice for this ... lovely. – Allie Aug 14 2011 at 20:01
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You may or may not find this useful:

http://csp.org/chrestomathy/lost_civilizations.html

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The health benefits associated with cannabis are great in number, but please remember that this is when the plant is eaten either as a solid or an oil, not when smoked. It is also not aligned with getting high. Few people actually report getting high when cannabis is part of their diet.

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some good reponses already. It obviously does not matter if it is 'paleo' or not. I don't think that would make a difference, mmmmm is slavery paleo?

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