If you think high THC potency is what you need in order to get the effects you desire, you may want to reconsider that thought. What if I were to tell you that you can get just as elevated on lower THC potency? Some people might say I’m crazy. However, I would beg to differ. I’m not alone in my assumption that high THC products don’t always get you, “higher.”
When you go into a cannabis dispensary these days, it seems they ask you if you’re looking for indica or sativa. The next thing they tell you about is the highest THC strains and products they have on the shelf that usually test somewhere between 25 to 30% THC. These are the top shelf strains and usually, come with top-shelf prices, some as high as $75 for 3.5 grams or an eighth of cannabis flower.
In fact, my experience with extremely high THC strains of cannabis is that they lose overall potency as well as flavor. I have found high THC strains to work at fighting nausea and stomach pains, but the overall buzz was minor. The University of Colorado at Boulder Institute of Cognitive Science recently conducted a study on 121 cannabis consumers. Their study conducted tests on consumers who use both flower and concentrates products.
Those who smoked flower tried different strains at 16% and 24%, whereas concentrate consumers tried concentrates testing at 70-90% THC. Researchers then monitored the intoxication level immediately following cannabis consumption as well as an hour later. They also monitored cognitive function, mood, and blood levels. The end result of this study was not what researchers were expecting. High THC flowers or concentrates did not get consumers higher. In fact, the medium THC flower and concentrates did the job just the same as the higher ones did. A professor involved in the study with expertise in addiction and psychology said,
“People in the high concentration group were much less compromised than we thought they would be. If we gave people that higher concentration of alcohol, it would have been a different story.”
The thought that high THC cannabis strains are going to produce a more intense buzz than others is silly if you begin to understand the science of cannabis.
This means that you must have an understanding that cannabis may work differently for each individual. What works for one person may not work the same for someone else. There is a theory with cannabis consumers that you will achieve a much more intense buzz by consuming a wide variety of cannabinoids versus a high level of just one. This theory is referred to as the ‘Entourage Effect.’ It is based on the assumption that multiple cannabinoids working in synchronicity with each other will achieve a more optimal effect from cannabis consumption.
The next time you’re in a dispensary getting ready to buy some flower or concentrates, and they start showing you the top-shelf high-priced ones with the highest level of THC possible consider passing them up this time and trying something else that you’ve been missing out on. Who knows you might find your next favorite, and it could just be a low to medium level THC strain of cannabis. In my personal experience, I find cannabis strains that contain THC, CBN, CBG, and CBD at moderate levels to be more effective than ones that only offer high levels of THC.
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