Cannabis use is not harmless, and overdose is possible. Cannabis may cause anxiety, paranoia, delusions or hallucinations, rapid heart rate, increased blood pressure, and severe nausea or vomiting. Some forms of cannabis use have a greater potential for poisoning due to the varying effects they can have on the body compared to smoking cannabis. Edibles and drinks infused with cannabis often contain unknown amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), can produce delayed effects, or have intoxicating effects that take longer than expected (CDC, 2025).
Those who experience potential cannabis poisoning or other poisoning should seek help by calling the 24/7 National Poison Control Hotline or by visiting their website at poison.org. Both options provide free, expert, and confidential guidance in a poison emergency. Calls will be routed to the local Poison Center, and will be managed by a Poison Specialist (registered nurse or pharmacist) who will determine the severity of your case and provide recommendations.
From 2016-2024, there was a total of 164,255 cases that mentioned cannabis as an exposure in Poison Control Center calls. The annual number of cannabis-related cases increased from 7,503 cases in 2016 to 27,766 cases in 2022, then decreased slightly through 2024 to 26,462 cases.
From 2016-2024, there were 106,806 cases in which cannabis was reported as the single source of exposure and that did not involve any other substance. The number of single exposure cannabis cases reported increased from 2,951 (39.3%) cases in 2016 to 19,972 (71.9%) cases in 2022, then decreased slightly through 2024 to 19,139 (72.3%) cases (Figure 1).
Dried cannabis plants were the most common type of cannabis exposure mentioned in Poison Control cases in 2016 to 2020, but were surpassed by cannabis edibles in 2021. Poison Control cases mentioning edibles continued to rise every year through 2024 to 13,044 cases (Figure 2).
Consumption of edibles carries a greater risk of poisoning than smoked cannabis. Ingested cannabis produces a delayed effect, which can lead some people to consume more before starting to feel the effects. The effects can last longer than expected, depending on the amount ingested, the last food eaten, and medications or alcohol used at the same time. The effects can also be unpredictable since the concentration of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is very difficult to measure and is often unknown in edible products (CDC).
In 2024, cannabis edibles were mostly (87.8%) reported alone as a single exposure, followed by cannabidiol (CBD, 81.5%), e-cigarettes (78.0%), and cannabis concentrates such as oils and tinctures (66.9%). Poison Control cases involving cannabis dried plants as the single exposure (50.1%) were less common (Figure 3), and often tended to also involve other substances.
Among Poison Control cases that reported a single cannabis exposure, those involving edibles have increased substantially in recent years, surpassing dried plants in 2019 to become the most common cannabis exposure type. Reports of cannabis edibles single exposures grew from 19 cases in 2016 to 11,450 in 2024 (Figure 4).
In the past few years, over half of the Poison Control cases relating to single cannabis edibles exposures were among children aged under 13 years, with the yearly percent increasing from 44% in 2017 to 58% in 2024.
From 2016-2024, the number of cases mentioning single cannabis edibles exposure immensely increased for all ages, particularly for young children aged 5 and under, increasing from 7 cases in 2016 to 4,736 cases in 2024 (Figure 5).
Cannabis edibles are more likely to be mistaken by children and adults as regular food and candy, leading to accidental consumption (CDC, 2024).
In 2024, over a quarter (29.7%) of single cannabis exposure cases resulted in moderate or major health outcomes (Figure 6).
Single cannabis exposure cases who received treatment at health care facilities increased steeply every year from 2,081 in 2016 to 13,500 in 2022, and then remained high through 2024 at 13,166 cases (Figure 7).
In California, following the legalization of recreational use of cannabis in 2016, the number of calls made to the Poison Control Center hotline for help on cannabis exposure had increased 162% from 2016 to 2024. In 2024, there was an annual total of 2,229 calls made for cannabis exposure (Figure 8).
A growing number of cannabis-related calls to the California Poison Control Center have involved unintentional exposures to cannabis. From 2016 to 2023, calls for unintentional exposure increased 344% from 296 to 1,314. Calls for unintentional exposures surpassed intentional exposures in 2020, and has held the majority, accounting for 56% of cannabis-related calls in 2024. From 2023 to 2024, calls for unintentional exposures decreased for the first time since 2016, while calls for intentional exposures increased by 13% (Figure 9).
Similar to the national trend, cannabis edibles have been the exposure type most frequently mentioned in calls to the California Poison Control Center, surpassing call mentions for dried plants in 2019.
The total number of calls mentioning cannabis edibles increased considerably from 4 in 2016 to 1,264 in 2023. From 2023 to 2024, calls for cannabis edibles decreased for the first time, by 8%. In 2024, 52% of calls to California Poison Control Center mentioned cannabis edibles (Figure 10).
The number of calls for cannabis-related exposures had been on an increasing trend since 2016. Among young children aged 5 or under, cannabis-related exposure calls spiked and continued to increase every year from 2020 to 2023, surpassing calls for adults aged 20 and older in 2021 through 2023 before decreasing for the first time from 2023 to 2024, by 11% (Figure 11).
In 2016-2024, while cannabis-related calls were usually for intentional exposure among youth aged 6-19 (55%) and adults aged 20+ (53%), all (100%) calls made for children aged 5 and under were for unintentional exposure of cannabis.
From 2016-2023, cannabis-related calls increased from 0 cases to 546 among children aged 5 and under, then dropped to 430 in 2024. In 2024, children aged 5 and under accounted for 37% of all cannabis-edible exposure calls
For older youth aged 6-19 and adults aged 20+, the increasing trend for cannabis edible-related calls continued though 2024 (Figure 12).
From 2016 to 2024, there were more cannabis-related Poison Control calls for males than for females, except in 2022-2023. From 2023 to 2024, cannabis-related calls for females decreased 5%, while those for males continued an increasing trend. In 2024, there were 1,157 cannabis-related calls for males, and 1,052 calls for females (Figure 13).
American Association of Poison control Centers National Poison Data System (NPDS). 2016-2024 Annual Report of the National Poison Data System. https://www.poisoncenters.org/annual-reports.
California Department of Public Health (CDPH), Substance and Addiction Prevention Branch. Cannabis Poison Control System Calls Dashboard [online]. 2026. Accessed Jun 25, 2026. https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/sapb/cannabis/Pages/Cannabis-Poison-Control-System-Calls-Dashboard.aspx
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 2024 February. Cannabis and Public Health, Cannabis and Poisoning. Retrieved June 26, 2026 from https://www.cdc.gov/cannabis/health-effects/poisoning.html
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 2025 January. Cannabis and Public Health, Cannabis Frequently Asked Questions. Retrieved June 25,2026 from https://www.cdc.gov/marijuana/faqs.htm