question: Why is it that edibles take a long time to "kick in" while alcohol hits you in a much shorter time frame?
comment: Edibles are broken down like food. While alcohol is a liquid and passes through different organs. Ex: liver. So it goes through there and is absorbed through blood. While the thc in edibles is released after the food part is broken down. So a mix of different organs and the way the chemicals are brought into the body. Ie an edible has a shield around it that has to be broken to get the thc. While alcohol is just straight up in your body and doesn’t have a shield. If it does it’s much smaller and doesn’t take as long to break
passages: Wine, beer, distilled spirits and other alcoholic drinks contain ethyl alcohol and alcohol consumption has short-term psychological and physiological effects on the user. Different concentrations of alcohol in the human body have different effects on a person. The effects of alcohol depend on the amount an individual has drunk, the percentage of alcohol in the wine, beer or spirits and the timespan that the consumption took place, the amount of food eaten and whether an individual has taken other prescription, over-the-counter or street drugs, among other factors. Alcohol in carbonated drinks is absorbed faster than alcohol in non-carbonated drinks.
   BULLET::::- fatty alcohol (C12–C18), precursors to detergents
  
  Methanol is the most common industrial alcohol, with about 12 million tons/y produced in 1980. The combined capacity of the other alcohols is about the same, distributed roughly equally.
  
  Section::::Toxicity.
  
  With respect to acute toxicity, simple alcohols have low acute toxicities. Doses of several milliliters are tolerated. For pentanols, hexanols, octanols and longer alcohols, LD50 range from 2–5 g/kg (rats, oral). Methanol and ethanol are less acutely toxic. All alcohols are mild skin irritants.
   BULLET::::- Hot water extraction is the most common and the cheapest method. The ß-D-glucans may have a content of approximately 35% in a pure extract.
  
  BULLET::::- Ethanol or methanol extraction isolates the water-insoluble components, betulinic acid, betulin and the phytosterols. This extraction process is in general used as a second step after hot-water extraction, since ethanol alone will not break down chitin effectively - heat is essential.
  
  BULLET::::- Fermentation is the most time-consuming and most expensive. Because fermentation methods are not standardized (many types of bacteria and fungi can be used in the process), the outcome is also not standardized.
   Food in the gastrointestinal system and hence gastric emptying is the most important factor that influences the absorption of orally ingested ethanol. The absorption of ethanol is much more rapid on an empty stomach than with a full one. The delay in ethanol absorption caused by food is similar regardless of whether food is consumed just before, at the same time, or just after ingestion of ethanol. The type of food, whether fat, carbohydrates, or protein, also is of little importance. Not only does food slow the absorption of ethanol, but it also reduces the bioavailability of ethanol, resulting in lower circulating concentrations. People who have fasted overnight have been found to reach peak ethanol concentrations more rapidly, at within 30 minutes of ingestion.
   There is also an increasing usage of distillation of gin under glass and PTFE, and even at reduced pressures, to facilitate a fresher product. This is irrelevant to alcohol quality, because the process starts with triple distilled grain alcohol, and the distillation is used solely to harvest botanical flavors such as limonene and other terpene like compounds. The ethyl alcohol is relatively unchanged.
   During the fermentation process, inoculum is added to the batch to speed the rate of fermentation. When inoculum is added, fermentation can take approximately 20 hours to 3 days. If inoculum is not added, fermentation could take up to 7 days. The rate of fermentation is a key factor in the quality and flavor of tequila produced. Worts fermented slowly are best because the amount of organoleptic compounds produced are greater. The alcohol content at the end of fermentation lies between 4-9%.
  
  Section::::Fermentation.:Organoleptic compounds.
   Organoleptic compounds are dependent on yeast. The role of yeast is to, through many enzymatic processes, turn sugars and carbohydrates into alcohol. There are two steps, first in aerobic conditions, yeast is doubled in colony size every four hours. This process goes on for 24–48 hours. Next, yeast turns acetaldehyde into ethyl alcohol which is known as one of the organoleptic compounds produced in fermentation.
   Besides fermentation, microbial food cultures can act on food products to alter their chemical make-up and provide additional flavors. This is especially true in processes such as the making of blue cheese or aged beef.
  
  Section::::Extraction.
  
  In the case of beverages, such as the aging of wine, beer, or whiskey, storing the beverage for extended periods of time in wooden casks allows the liquid to extract flavor compounds from the wood itself, adding to the complexity and depth of flavor. Traditional Balsamic Vinegar is aged for years in a succession of oak barrels to extract and concentrate flavors.
  
  Section::::See also.
   Fermentation is the process of culturing yeast under favorable thermal conditions to produce alcohol. This process is carried out at around . Toxicity of ethanol to yeast limits the ethanol concentration obtainable by brewing; higher concentrations, therefore, are obtained by fortification or distillation. The most ethanol-tolerant yeast strains can survive up to approximately 18% ethanol by volume.
   Although hashish is sometimes eaten raw or mixed with boiling water, THC and other cannabinoids are more efficiently absorbed into the bloodstream when combined with butter and other lipids or, less so, dissolved in ethanol. Chocolates, brownies, space cakes, and majoon are popular methods of ingestion. The time to onset of effects depends strongly on stomach content, but is usually 1 to 2 hours, and may continue for a considerable length of time, whereas the effects of smoking or vaporizing cannabis are almost immediate, lasting a shorter length of time.
   _Alcoholic beverages like beer and wine are fermented by microorganisms when there is no oxygen present.
  
  _Most yeast can tolerate between 10 and 15 percent alcohol, but there are some strains that can tolerate up to 21 percent alcohol.
  
  _Dairy products like cheese and yogurt can also be made through fermentation using microbes. 
  
  Cheese was produced as a way to preserve the nutrients obtained from milk, through
  
  fermentation thus elongating the shelf-life of the product. 
   BULLET::::- Ethanol, into which lactic acid can be easily converted, is volatile and will readily escape, allowing the reaction to proceed easily. CO is also produced, but it is only weakly acidic and even more volatile than ethanol.
   Minute quantity amounts (average 196 ppb) of endogenous ethanol and acetaldehyde were found in the exhaled breath of healthy volunteers. Auto-brewery syndrome, also known as gut fermentation syndrome, is a rare medical condition in which intoxicating quantities of ethanol are produced through endogenous fermentation within the digestive system.
  
  Section::::Production.
   A study by a team of researchers at the University of Idaho, Washington State University, and the US Department of Agriculture's Nutrient Data Laboratory calculated the percentage of alcohol remaining in a dish based on various cooking methods. The results are as follows:
  
  BULLET::::- alcohol added to boiling liquid and removed from heat: 85% alcohol retained
  
  BULLET::::- alcohol flamed: 75% alcohol retained
  
  BULLET::::- no heat, stored overnight: 70% alcohol retained
  
  BULLET::::- baked, 25 minutes, alcohol not stirred into mixture: 45% alcohol retained
  
  BULLET::::- baked/simmered, alcohol stirred into mixture: (see table)
  
  Section::::Alcohol as cooking fuel.
   BULLET::::- Beer, whiskey, and vodka are produced by fermentation of grain starches that have been converted to sugar by the enzyme amylase, which is present in grain kernels that have been malted (i.e. germinated). Other sources of starch (e.g. potatoes and unmalted grain) may be added to the mixture, as the amylase will act on those starches as well. Whiskey and vodka are also distilled; gin and related beverages are produced by the addition of flavoring agents to a vodka-like feedstock during distillation.
   The liquid being distilled is a mixture of mainly water and alcohol, along with smaller amounts of other by-products of fermentation (called congeners), such as aldehydes and esters. Alcohol (ethanol) has a normal boiling point of 78.4 °C (173.12 °F), compared with pure water, which boils at 100 °C (212 °F). As alcohol has a lower boiling point, it is more volatile and evaporates at a higher rate than water. Therefore, the concentration of alcohol in the vapour phase above the liquid is higher than in the liquid itself.
   Alcohol has a higher refractive index (1.361) than water (1.333). As a consequence, a refractometer measurement made on a sugar solution once fermentation has begun will result in a reading substantially higher than the actual solids content. Thus, an operator must be certain that the sample they are testing has not begun to ferment. Brix or Plato measurements based on specific gravity are also affected by fermentation, but in the opposite direction; as ethanol is less dense than water, an ethanol/sugar/water solution gives a Brix or Plato reading which is artificially low.
  
  Section::::Further reading.
   Section::::General process overview.:Phases of growth.
  
  Fermentation begins once the growth medium is inoculated with the organism of interest. Growth of the inoculum does not occur immediately. This is the period of adaptation, called the lag phase. Following the lag phase, the rate of growth of the organism steadily increases, for a certain period—this period is the log or exponential phase. 
   Because of hydrogen bonding, alcohols tend to have higher boiling points than comparable hydrocarbons and ethers. The boiling point of the alcohol ethanol is 78.29 °C, compared to 69 °C for the hydrocarbon hexane, and 34.6 °C for diethyl ether.
  
  Section::::Occurrence in nature.
  
  Simple alcohols are found widely in nature. Ethanol is most prominent because it is the product of fermentation, a major energy-producing pathway. The other simple alcohols are formed in only trace amounts. More complex alcohols are pervasive, as manifested in sugars, some amino acids, and fatty acids.
  
  Section::::Production.
  
  Section::::Production.:Ziegler and oxo processes.
   The alcohol in beer comes primarily from the metabolism of sugars that are produced during fermentation. The quantity of fermentable sugars in the wort and the variety of yeast used to ferment the wort are the primary factors that determine the amount of alcohol in the final beer. Additional fermentable sugars are sometimes added to increase alcohol content, and enzymes are often added to the wort for certain styles of beer (primarily "light" beers) to convert more complex carbohydrates (starches) to fermentable sugars. Alcohol is a by-product of yeast metabolism and is toxic to the yeast in higher concentrations; typical brewing yeast cannot survive at alcohol concentrations above 12% by volume. Low temperatures and too little fermentation time decreases the effectiveness of yeasts and consequently decreases the alcohol content.
   Section::::The effect of alcohol.
   BULLET::::- tert-Butyl alcohol
  
  BULLET::::- Timeline of alcohol fuel
  
  Section::::External links.
  
  BULLET::::- Alcohol (Ethanol) at "The Periodic Table of Videos" (University of Nottingham)
  
  BULLET::::- International Labour Organization ethanol safety information
  
  BULLET::::- National Pollutant Inventory – Ethanol Fact Sheet
  
  BULLET::::- CDC – NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards – Ethyl Alcohol
  
  BULLET::::- National Institute of Standards and Technology chemical data on ethanol
  
  BULLET::::- Chicago Board of Trade news and market data on ethanol futures
  
  BULLET::::- Calculation of vapor pressure, liquid density, dynamic liquid viscosity, surface tension of ethanol
  
  BULLET::::- Ethanol History A look into the history of ethanol
   The isotopic parameters of both water and ethanol are related to the humidity and temperature of the growing region of the plant. Therefore, considerations of meteorological data of the region and of the year help to make a diagnosis. In the case of wine and fruits, the isotopic parameters of ethanol have been shown to respond even to subtle environmental variations and they efficiently characterize the region of production.
   Club foots collected from Stinchfield Woods northwest of Dexter, Michigan in 1974, 1976 and 1977 caused an Antabuse-like syndrome. Alcohol was consumed around seven hours after the mushrooms were eaten in each case, resulting in flushing of the face, throbbing of the head and neck and puffy hands around five to ten minutes afterwards. The symptoms were mild with vodka and gin, but worse with whiskey, which resulted in a pounding headache that lasted several hours. Rechallenging with alcohol the next day brought on the symptoms but not after that. The phenomenon has been reported at least one other time in the United States. Oddly, collection of club foots before 1974 did not reveal any symptoms. The phenomenon has also been recorded in Japan. Though similar to the symptoms experienced with "Coprinopsis atramentaria", that species' active agent, coprine, has not been isolated. Experiments with club foot extract found that it inhibited the enzyme acetaldehyde dehydrogenase in mouse livers.
   Section::::Conditioning.
  
  After an initial or primary fermentation, beer is "conditioned", matured or aged, in one of several ways, which can take from 2 to 4 weeks, several months, or several years, depending on the brewer's intention for the beer. The beer is usually transferred into a second container, so that it is no longer exposed to the dead yeast and other debris (also known as "trub") that have settled to the bottom of the primary fermenter. This prevents the formation of unwanted flavours and harmful compounds such as acetylaldehyde.
  
  BULLET::::- Kräusening
  