Now that the personal and private use of marijuana is legal in South Africa, it’s time to start looking into what the smokeable can actually do.

We’ve already covered the amount of weed that you’re allowed to have in your possession and we’ve given you the low-down on what is and is not permissible when getting stoned. Now let’s look at some of the potential side-effects of pot smoking that you might not have heard of.

If you thought that having your motivation sapped was the scariest thing about smoking pot, then you’ve clearly never heard of cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS).

Here’s The Stranger:

First described by Australian researchers in 2004, this condition is marked by near constant vomiting episodes and an uncontrollable urge to shower.

The warm water of a bath or shower keeps the poor CHS-afflicted soul from continuing to vomit, so they spend their life in flux between retching and rinsing.

Weed has been proven to help with nausea so sufferers of CHS often keep smoking, thinking that the smokeable will help them. This sends them on a constant rotation between showering, throwing up, smoking and then doing it all over again.

Doctors don’t know how pot causes CHS, but there’s little doubt that weed is the culprit. As soon as people stop smoking cannabis, the symptoms cease, according to Beatriz Carlini, an associate professor at the University of Washington Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute.

“Just take cannabis out, and it stops immediately. So we don’t know the mechanisms, but we know it is caused by cannabis,” Carlini said.

The condition is relatively rare, and there are no big studies on whether or not rates of CHS have risen in countries that have legalised marijuana.

So, perhaps a word of warning – if you’ve been smoking pot for years, and you’re suddenly trapped in a cycle of vomiting, showering and getting stoned again and again – stop smoking weed.

If not, continue on your merry way.

[source:thestranger]