Cannabinoids: Ten Fresh Facts

Most people are familiar with the cannabinoids THC and CBD, and when choosing their cannabis products, are confident talking THC to CBD ratios. THC and CBD are the favorite cannabinoids and so the most studied and the most talked about. You probably know that THC makes you high, and CBD has health benefits, as they are everywhere. 

We’d like to introduce you to a few other facts about Cannabinoids you may not know…

Cannabinoids are Cannabinoids. No matter the source ~ cannabis or hemp.

Cannabis and Hemp both contain 104 cannabinoids that have presently been identified. Two of these, THC & CBD, have been the subject of most of the scientific investigation into whether cannabinoids have health and wellness benefits. THC and CBD are the most abundant cannabinoids in cannabis by a very large proportion.

CBN is in the very preliminary stages of being considered the sleep cannabinoid as it can increase sedation by decreasing your heart rate, causing mind and body relaxation. It can also stimulate your appetite ~ hello munchies. But a caution about CBN, it is essentially THC that has been exposed to the air and oxidized. So it can also affect people the same way THC does and give you the ‘stoner scaries’.

There is a current study, still ongoing, looking into the benefits of CBG as an antibacterial and anti-inflammatory cannabinoid. Until this research is published we should be cautionary drawing any major conclusions, but this is promising. It is also the most costly cannabinoid, as it is the least naturally dominant so it requires thousands of pounds of biomass to create small amounts of CBG isolate.

THCV may be a natural appetite suppressant. A recent study found that it may help control food intake by increasing the period of time a person feels satiated, and can also stabilize insulin levels.

CBC has been studied the least. So we are cautious to point out any singular benefit as of yet. But recent studies have linked it to the decrease in fluid retention and sebum production ~ read puffiness and acne treatment.

Today’s cannabis plants pack a much higher dosage of THC to CBD than what naturally occurred in the ’90s. Today’s plants have been genetically modified to increase their THC concentration, resulting in a change in the ratio of THC to CBD from 14:1 in 1995 to approx 80:1 in 2014.

Cannabis naturally has more THC than CBD. On average THC accounts for 17% and CBD less than 0.15%.

Hemp naturally packs more CBD, about 20% of the plant. Perhaps this caused the hype about the cannabinoid CBD immediately after the Hemp Farm Bill took effect in December 2018.

CBD may lessen the psychoactive effects of THC, so if you feel yourself getting a little too high, a hit of a CBD-dominant product may reduce your intoxication.