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Its official, the new year has begun. Even the most diehard holiday season lovers have reluctantly let it go. The last of the Christmas trees have made to the curb and everyone is ready to face the year face on and ready to rumble.
Will this year be different from the last two years? Yes it will. Will it be better? You betcha!! But how do you guys know that? Well, we just do. We have all been through so much in the last two years that there is really nowhere to go but up. As with everything it will require our personal participation, we will all have to show up this year and really put our effort into make this the year that we all finally get to move forward with our lives.
Just remember to carry forward the lessons we have learned in the last 24 months. With personal health in the spotlight we hope that you will all continue forward on the path of exploration of plant medicine. We expect to see some really great advances in the coming 12 to 24 months in this regard and we are PSYCHED!!
Speaking of plant medicine let’s get back to unlocking the secrets of cannabis.
Isolation
Last week we were talking about the basic composition of the cannabis plant. We talked about the various cannabinoid compounds that are found in the plant. And we discussed their general therapeutic benefits. The truth is that any one of these cannabinoids would be very effective on its own.
Each cannabinoid can be chemically separated from the other cannabinoids through processes in a lab that are a bit too technical for us to casually dive into. Suffice to say that any given molecule (cannabinoid) can be isolated so that it is the only molecule (cannbinoid) from the plant found in the extract. A truly isolating experience. This substance usually comes in a fluffy white powder commonly known in the industry as Isolate.
Industry Standard
CBD isolate is a favorite in the business because it has 0% THC. It is relatively cheap to make and is therefore cheap to buy. Many of the products that you see out there are either made only with isolate or are heavily spiked with Isolate. And they are ok with that. We are not.
There are the usual pros and cons for isolate. But realistically there are two major drawbacks to using isolate. One is the fact that the efficacy of isolate on the human drops significantly after the fourth or fifth usage. This leads to the next problem, the absence of what is known as the Entourage Effect. It is specifically the absence of this effect that weakens the ability of isolate to help the body.
Enter the Entourage
So what is the Entourage Effect and how do we get some? Last week we talked about the different types of cannabinoids and how they work individually. Specific cannabinoids such as CBG and CBDA affect specific conditions, such as ADHD and Menopause.
We know that when we extract cannabinoids from a cannabis plant we get not only the cannabinoids that we are specifically looking for such as CBD. We also get traces of all of the other cannbinoids found in the plant. Some, such as CBG and CBN, appear in larger quantities. While others such as CBC and CBT appear in very small quantities. Some don’t appear at all but the traces are there.
In addition to the cannabinoids there are other compounds in the cannabis plant such as terpenes and flavinoids. Both of which have their own therapeutic properties when they interact with the body. When all of these elements combine in tandem to strengthen and support one another as they interact with the human body this is known as the Entourage Effect. Working together all of these elements can positively affect the body in ways that they would never be able to do individually.
For this reason many purists in the industry (present company included) believe that full spectrum extract is superior to broadspectrum. But things being what they are and ignorance in regard to the cannabis industry at the highest levels of government we must work within the established regulations not matter how misguided or ill-founded they are.
Next week we are going to talk about the hidden stars of the Entourage Effect and the God molecule. If you are hitting the slopes this weekend don’t forget to drop by the shop and grab some Sunset Salve to help with after ski recovery.