The Entourage Effect is the science of combing cannabinoids.
The way marijuana affects people has been the subject of much study over the years. It’s known for causing a euphoric high, and it can also make people feel sleepy, energized, and even hungry. These effects are caused by the many different compounds found within the marijuana plant. While those compounds each play an individual role in how marijuana makes people feel, a theory known as “the entourage effect” says that these chemicals behave differently – and potentially even better – when combined together.
Over the years, the existence of the entourage effect has been the subject of much research and debate in the scientific community.
The Compounds Within Cannabis
To fully understand the entourage effect, it’s helpful to learn about the various compounds within the cannabis plant. Cannabinoids and terpenes are found within marijuana as well as within non-psychoactive hemp. They’re responsible for everything about the way the plant works – from the way it affects the human brain and body to the way it tastes and smells.
The main compounds responsible for the cannabis entourage effect are cannabinoids and terpenes.
Cannabinoids
The history of marijuana cannabinoids begins back in the early 1960s with an Israeli scientist named Dr. Raphael Mechoulam. He was curious about the mechanism through which marijuana makes people high. Scientists had been able to figure out that the opium plant causes intoxication because it contains morphine and that cacao leaves cause a high because they contain cocaine, but no one had yet discovered the compound that causes marijuana’s psychotropic effects.
The first compound Mechoulam and his team isolated within marijuana was cannabidiol (CBD). While CBD is a major cannabinoid that’s responsible for some of marijuana’s effects, it doesn’t get people high. About a year later, Mechoulam became the first person to isolate, characterize, and synthesize delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, otherwise known as THC. In the years to come, he was also to characterize the human endocannabinoid system – the network of receptors in the brain and body through which cannabinoids like THC work.
In addition to THC and CBD, marijuana also contains many other cannabinoids, albeit in much lower percentages. They include compounds such as tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV) and cannabinol (CBN) and can cause effects such as sedation, inhibiting pain, and reducing inflammation. All of these cannabinoids are produced in the plant’s trichomes, or resin glands.
Terpenes
Meanwhile, a marijuana plant’s trichomes also secrete oils known as terpenes. At first glance, terpenes simply make cannabis taste or smell a certain way. Linalool, for example, gives some marijuana strains a floral taste and fragrance, while caryophyllene causes a spicy, peppery scent.
Terpenes do more than add a signature taste and aroma to different cannabis strains, however. They’re also responsible for marijuana’s effects. Those who smell linalool will be strongly reminded of lavender – another plant that contains this potent terpene. In marijuana just as in lavender, linalool is responsible for calming anxiety and pain. Citrus oils are famous for their antidepressant properties. Like cannabis, they contain limonene, a terpene that’s known to help lift depression.
What Is the Entourage Effect?
While cannabinoids and terpenes have been studied for their individual effects, proponents of the entourage effect are interested in the way these compounds work when combined with each other. They insist that consuming whole-plant marijuana produces a different effect than consuming individual cannabinoids or terpenes in isolation. The term “entourage effect” was coined by Mechoulam and Shimon Ben-Shabat in a cannabinoid study from 1999. In the study, Mechoulam and Shabat suggested that this phenomenon explains why botanical drugs (containing the entire spectrum of compounds within a plant) can sometimes be more effective than the plant’s isolated components.
Because most cannabinoids and terpenes are present in marijuana in such small concentrations, this makes it difficult to judge the effects that these individual compounds have when the plant is consumed as a whole. The exception to this rule is THC and CBD, the two cannabinoids found in the highest percentages in most marijuana strains. It’s the interaction between these two cannabinoids that provides one of the strongest arguments for the entourage effect.
Individual Effects of THC
Although the effects of THC can vary from one person to another, it’s well-known for causing a euphoric high. It’s useful for a variety of medical purposes, from calming pain and nausea to stimulating appetite. THC may also have negative side effects; it can cause short-term memory loss, an increased heart rate, and anxiety.
While these effects can be uncomfortable for some recreational marijuana consumers, they may be absolutely intolerable for medical marijuana patients. That’s what some people discovered about dronabinol, a synthetic THC medication marketed under the name of Marinol and used to quell nausea and vomiting and stimulate appetite. The THC side effects are too strong for some patients, however, causing them to feel anxious and unable to concentrate and function while taking it.
Individual Effects of CBD
CBD also has a whole host of medical uses. In addition to working as an effective painkiller, it’s also good at calming anxiety and lifting depression. Researchers have also found that CBD is effective at treating seizures in people with rare forms of epilepsy.
Unlike THC, CBD does not cause an intoxicating high and its side effects are generally mild. High doses of CBD can result in lightheadedness and a dry mouth, but it’s usually well-tolerated.
The way marijuana affects people has been the subject of much study over the years. It’s known for causing a euphoric high, and it can also make people feel sleepy, energized, and even hungry. These effects are caused by the many different compounds found within the marijuana plant. While those compounds each play an individual role in how marijuana makes people feel, a theory known as “the entourage effect” says that these chemicals behave differently – and potentially even better – when combined together.
Over the years, the existence of the entourage effect has been the subject of much research and debate in the scientific community.
The Compounds Within Cannabis
To fully understand the entourage effect, it’s helpful to learn about the various compounds within the cannabis plant. Cannabinoids and terpenes are found within marijuana as well as within non-psychoactive hemp. They’re responsible for everything about the way the plant works – from the way it affects the human brain and body to the way it tastes and smells.
The main compounds responsible for the cannabis entourage effect are cannabinoids and terpenes.
Cannabinoids
The history of marijuana cannabinoids begins back in the early 1960s with an Israeli scientist named Dr. Raphael Mechoulam. He was curious about the mechanism through which marijuana makes people high. Scientists had been able to figure out that the opium plant causes intoxication because it contains morphine and that cacao leaves cause a high because they contain cocaine, but no one had yet discovered the compound that causes marijuana’s psychotropic effects.
The first compound Mechoulam and his team isolated within marijuana was cannabidiol (CBD). While CBD is a major cannabinoid that’s responsible for some of marijuana’s effects, it doesn’t get people high. About a year later, Mechoulam became the first person to isolate, characterize, and synthesize delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, otherwise known as THC. In the years to come, he was also to characterize the human endocannabinoid system – the network of receptors in the brain and body through which cannabinoids like THC work.
In addition to THC and CBD, marijuana also contains many other cannabinoids, albeit in much lower percentages. They include compounds such as tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV) and cannabinol (CBN) and can cause effects such as sedation, inhibiting pain, and reducing inflammation. All of these cannabinoids are produced in the plant’s trichomes, or resin glands.
Terpenes
Meanwhile, a marijuana plant’s trichomes also secrete oils known as terpenes. At first glance, terpenes simply make cannabis taste or smell a certain way. Linalool, for example, gives some marijuana strains a floral taste and fragrance, while caryophyllene causes a spicy, peppery scent.
Terpenes do more than add a signature taste and aroma to different cannabis strains, however. They’re also responsible for marijuana’s effects. Those who smell linalool will be strongly reminded of lavender – another plant that contains this potent terpene. In marijuana just as in lavender, linalool is responsible for calming anxiety and pain. Citrus oils are famous for their antidepressant properties. Like cannabis, they contain limonene, a terpene that’s known to help lift depression.
What Is the Entourage Effect?
While cannabinoids and terpenes have been studied for their individual effects, proponents of the entourage effect are interested in the way these compounds work when combined with each other. They insist that consuming whole-plant marijuana produces a different effect than consuming individual cannabinoids or terpenes in isolation. The term “entourage effect” was coined by Mechoulam and Shimon Ben-Shabat in a cannabinoid study from 1999. In the study, Mechoulam and Shabat suggested that this phenomenon explains why botanical drugs (containing the entire spectrum of compounds within a plant) can sometimes be more effective than the plant’s isolated components.
Because most cannabinoids and terpenes are present in marijuana in such small concentrations, this makes it difficult to judge the effects that these individual compounds have when the plant is consumed as a whole. The exception to this rule is THC and CBD, the two cannabinoids found in the highest percentages in most marijuana strains. It’s the interaction between these two cannabinoids that provides one of the strongest arguments for the entourage effect.
Individual Effects of THC
Although the effects of THC can vary from one person to another, it’s well-known for causing a euphoric high. It’s useful for a variety of medical purposes, from calming pain and nausea to stimulating appetite. THC may also have negative side effects; it can cause short-term memory loss, an increased heart rate, and anxiety.
While these effects can be uncomfortable for some recreational marijuana consumers, they may be absolutely intolerable for medical marijuana patients. That’s what some people discovered about dronabinol, a synthetic THC medication marketed under the name of Marinol and used to quell nausea and vomiting and stimulate appetite. The THC side effects are too strong for some patients, however, causing them to feel anxious and unable to concentrate and function while taking it.
Individual Effects of CBD
CBD also has a whole host of medical uses. In addition to working as an effective painkiller, it’s also good at calming anxiety and lifting depression. Researchers have also found that CBD is effective at treating seizures in people with rare forms of epilepsy.
Unlike THC, CBD does not cause an intoxicating high and its side effects are generally mild. High doses of CBD can result in lightheadedness and a dry mouth, but it’s usually well-tolerated.
