If you’re looking into cannabinoids and terpenes from the cannabis plant you’re in the right place. In this short article, we’ll be covering a brief overview of cannabis and the compounds found in it.
Cannabinoids and Terpenes
The cannabis plant has a long history of use both as a medicinal plant and recreational for over five thousand years. Anthropologists have recently followed the growth curve of cannabis to its original roots in the Tibetan mountains before spreading across the globe to South America, Asia and everywhere else it could pollinate. Cannabinoids and terpenes are just part of the wonderful compounds found in this incredible plant.
Cannabis has the ability to grow just about anywhere from cardboard boxes in a closet, to well-groomed gardens, basements and ditches on the side of the road. The reason there are so many varieties of the cannabis plant in present day is because so many people enjoy the psychoactive effects of the cannabinoid THC, however, cultures from around the world have been using cannabinoids and terpenes found in the hemp plant to treat various conditions and ailments for thousands of years with its regular use being well documented in china some 4000 BC.
Cannabis is the species of plant that gives rise to the varieties hemp and marijuana. Just like with apples, you have granny smith and macintosh, with cannabis you have hemp and marijuana. The only difference is they have a different “flavor and color.” Differing ratios of cannabinoids and terpenes. Simply put, hemp has virtually no THC or psychoactive properties, whereas marijuana is bred for high THC.
The effects of medicinal cannabinoids and terpenes can be powerful and are becoming increasingly well documented in peer reviewed medical journals by top researchers. So much so that the evidence is too strong to ignore with many countries and states legalizing medicinal cannabinoids and terpenes for over the counter sale.
Cannabinoids and Terpenes Science
Highly regarded, scientific and medical journals such as the British Journal of Pharmacology, Science, Nature, Journal of the American Medical Association, The Lancet, Neuropharmacology, Journal of Pain Medicine, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Journal of Mineral and Bone Research, and Cell are all publishing the latest peer-reviewed data on the power of medicinal cannabinoids and terpenes from the cannabis hemp plant.
If you’re unfamiliar with medical journals and reading the latest scientific research, we provide an easier to read version over on our blog as our editors cover what the data tells us in a user friendly format. If we were to be as direct as possible, politics aside, cannabis is the most medicinally powerful plant on the planet rich in cannabinoids and terpenes, flavonols, phytosterols, flavonoids and many other bioactive medicinal plant compounds.
No plant comes close to the applications and compounds present in this powerhouse of a green “weed.” It’s almost as if it popped up out of nowhere millions of years ago to soothe the health of any mammal with an endocannabinoid system.
The only challenge we have now is waiting for the lawmakers, law enforcement and the general public to get on board with the use of this plant. Getting around its 100 year old stigma as a plant that only gets you high is at the centrepiece of the re-education campaigns. Cannabis can be grown with zero THC, that means zero psychoactive effects. The hemp plant is such a variety. So technically, the more we can promote the healing benefits of hemp, the better off we’ll all be.
Aftering covering all of that, we haven’t even started talking about the 200+ individual cannabinoids and terpenes present in the hemp plant, such as cannabidiol (CBD), linalool, and pinene. CBD was almost bred out of the cannabis plant due to breeders wanting to maintain high levels of THC to get users “stoned.”
The Evidence Is Clear
Luckily, the research has exploded in recent times over the benefits of cannabinoids and terpenes, and even though we’ve known about CBD well before we found THC, researchers incorrectly labelled CBD as an inactive cannabinoid. Now we know CBD is an extraordinarily powerful cannabinoid that can assist the body in multiple ways.
The research on humans, animals and pharmacology has demonstrated the properties of cannabidiol as; anti-proliferative, anti-cancer, antiemetic (vomiting and nausea), antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-psoriatic, anti-diabetic, analgesic (pain killer), anti-diarrheal, immunosuppressive, bone stimulant, antispasmodic, anti-ischemic, cardio-protective, vasorelaxant, neuroprotective, antipsychotic, anti-epileptic, anxiolytic, and weight loss promoting.
If scientists, physicians, or lawmakers were to refute this evidence, in a word, this would be unscientific. Although, on the other side of the coin, the way many medicinal cannabis treatments are conducted, is in some ways, just as unscientific. This is why we need to look at what the data tells us about dosages and ratios, along with what established clinics have been practicing with cannabinoids and terpenes in countries which have continued to legalize the over the counter use of cannabis products.
There are many compounds in the cannabis plant that don’t include cannabinoids, such as terpenes, flavanols, phytosterols and fatty acids. When hemp products are created that utilize a full spectrum of these naturally occurring plant compounds combined with cannabinoids, you get what is called the “entourage effect” which improves synergy, strength and bioavailability of the product.
In our blog we take the information found in peer reviewed medical journals, history of cannabis use, the latest scientific discoveries, and how that relates to the plant-based cannabinoid system, and our own built-in cannabinoid system called the endocannabinoid system to bring you relevant articles relating to specific conditions, ailments and issues present in modern day society.
What Are Terpenes
Terpenes are naturally occurring compounds found in most plants that are kind of like food flavoring. Terpenes are commonly found in essential oil products such as lavender oil, which contains the terpene Linalool. Another familiar terpene most of us have had the pleasure of smelling, is pinene, found in pine trees.
Every terpene has a unique medicinal effect on the body with some cannabinoids and terpenes assisting with anxiety, stress relief, insomnia and much more. The question isn’t whether cannabinoids and terpenes are of value, but more, what are terpenes and what can they do for my specific condition?
The answer is often found in nature. As research begins to uncover more about the benefits of mixing cannabinoids and terpenes often found in plants such as hemp, we can begin to explore how we can apply these unique compounds to assist us in our quest for better well-being, peace and harmony in our lives.
If you would like to know more about cannabinoids and terpenes from the hemp plant, be sure to read our article called What Are Hemp Terpenes and for further information on what each cannabinoid does and how that can assist the body, take a look around our blog, or read our article What Are Cannabinoids.
As always, prior to undertaking any adjustments to your lifestyle or treatment plan, consult with a licenced medical professional.
