THC

Do we Gastric Bypass patients absorb THC like normal people?

Taken how?

Smoked?  Eaten in brownies?

smoked?

Now, do not quote me on this.  I've never done THC, don't plan on testing out the hypothesis, either.

But since the absorption is completely in the lungs and not through the GI tract, I cannot imagine there to be much difference between pre and post-op.  There was a note about smoking:  "Cannabis smoke is usually inhaled deep into the lungs and held there for an extended time, in order to maximize absorption of the active compounds. While cannabis users in North America often retain the smoke in their lungs for up to a minute or longer, preliminary laboratory data suggest that the retention of almost all of the cannabinoids in the inhaled smoke may occur after a considerably shorter interval (less than half a minute may be sufficient).399,487 By contrast. prolonged retention of inhaled smoke is not common among cannabis users in either India or Jamaica, although deep inhalation techniques are typically used.412,534 On the basis of the present data, then, it would appear that under optimal conditions, a smoker may absorb up to one-half of the THC available in the cannabis material. Under most conditions however, both social and experimental, considerably less of the THC actually enters the physiological system[n]"

And I found this about GI absorption:  

"Absorption of THC by the gastrointestinal tract is quite effective, but relatively slow and erratic.359 The food content of the stomach may affect the rate of absorption. Even though cannabis resin is poorly soluble in water, effective emulsions or suspensions of cannabinoids in water can be achieved for oral consumption, and in the East cannabis is often used in making tea or other beverages. Mild bhang drinks, served cold, are common in parts of India. In some countries, hashish is incorporated into buttered candies, called majoon, or into other foods. Prior cooking may increase the potency of eaten cannabis by changing inactive THCA to THC. The effects of cannabis taken orally usually begin after about an hour and gradually reach a peak within several hours, then slowly decline. Several investigators have reported a surprising abrupt (but delayed) onset of potent symptoms after ingestion.16,243,402 Very high doses may produce acute effects lasting more than a day, although the drug is not ordinarily used in such large quantities in North America. Cannabis is also effective when administered rectally.

The subjective effects of eating cannabis are sometimes said to be noticeably different, qualitatively, from those of smoking. It is uncertain whether this alleged difference might be due to chemical changes resulting from the heat in smoked material, the effects of the digestive juices or other metabolic processes after ingestion, or differences in rapidity and efficiency of absorption and distribution with the two methods. In spite of the THC loss due to burning, on a weight basis, inhalation is the more effective mode of administration; THC in material smoked reportedly produces effects comparable in intensity to approximately three times the same quantity taken orally Since, at most, only half of the original THC in smoked cannabis is actually delivered and absorbed, inhalation may be five to ten times as effective a mode of administration. This general formula may not apply to crude cannabis preparations if a substantial proportion of the THC present is in acid forms (THCA), since these compounds are apparently inactive when taken orally, but are converted to active THC when smoked. Furthermore, if THC is given by oral ingestion, the vehicle in which it is administered (for example, alcohol, sesame oil or glycocholic acid solution) can significantly affect the rate of absorption and the intensity and duration of the drug effects.495 Clearly, further work is needed in this area employing up-to-date analytic techniques."

I, on the other hand, can speak from experience (although it has only been like, once in the past year... I'm not usually a very big fan of the THC experience) and I can say that YES, the experience was absolutely exactly the same as pre op. 

I was just wondering also how long does it stay in the system?

I'd imagine probably exactly the same given that the absorption of the substance really doesn't have much to do with our bypassed intestine/smaller stomach... the only things that are malabsorbed by that are food and vitamins, right? Like our girl mentioned earlier, THC is absorbed through the lungs.

For drug-testing purposes, about 30 days.