How Cannabis and Alcohol Use Could Impact DUI Laws
By Jonathan Blecher on June 23, 2015
A recent study conducted at the University of Iowa has concluded that consuming alcohol causes your blood to retain more THC from cannabis than if you had not had any drinks at all. This could imply that someone who has both inhaled cannabis and drank alcohol within a short amount of time would feel the effects of the illicit substance to a greater degree. There also seems to be something about smoking cannabis that makes people want to drink less alcohol, although this is not definitive and not the focus of the study.
In their testing, 19 participants inhaled vaporized cannabis at their own rate while drinking either juice or a mixed-drink cocktail. At regular intervals, the researchers would take blood samples for testing. Overall, the THC in the blood of the subjects given alcohol was “significantly higher” than what was found in the people who had not been drinking. It is proposed that this could be due to the fact that alcohol can increase cardiac rates, accelerating the absorption of most any substance, including THC.
Past research has shown that alcohol and cannabis together in your body causes a stronger impairment than either one alone. The research conducted by the University of Iowa seems to directly back that up. In the end, this could mean stricter laws related to driving under the influence (DUI) of cannabis, especially when the driver has also had some alcoholic drinks.
If you are facing charges for driving while under the influence of cannabis or any other illicit substance and now need a Miami criminal defense lawyer, I, Attorney Jonathan Blecher, can help. For more than 30 years, I have been defending the rights of those accused of DUI crimes and have earned a respectable reputation amongst my clients and my peers.
Contact me today if you would like to learn your legal options and how I can start
developing a case that protects you from the harsh penalties of the law.
