When we go into a dispensary we often are looking for a product to make us feel a specific way. Often the terms indica, sativa, and hybrid are used to provide some prediction of how a product will make us feel. Sativas being uplifting, indicas being sedating, and hybrids… somewhere in between. Although I think this can be a good communication tool, the science is showing that it may not be a good predictor for how the product will actually make us feel.
If there was some rationale being this nomenclature we should expect to see some consistency in the chemistry between all sativas and consistency in indicas that would be responsible for their pharmacological effects- which is not the case. Rather than this naming system it may be beneficial to investigate the chemistry of the plant as a predictor of how we will feel after consuming.
The cannabis plant produces a unique suite of molecules in different chemical classes, including cannabinoids, terpenes, flavonoids, and more. Understanding that these molecules are interacting with our bodies and changing our experience is extremely important.
In this video we discuss this paper, https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0267498.
This paper dives into the importance of terpenes in the cannabis experience and why it’s important to understand what the dominant terpenes of a product are.
With that being said, at the end of the day someone’s preference for cannabis products come down to many factors including the products they consume, the way in which they consume, the amount they consume, their personal genetics, their mental health state, and so much more.
Always use responsibly, and I hope this video provides some insight for choosing your next product.
Mad love,
Riley
