Terpenes are common scents to seasoned cannabis consumers and we’ll explore a little background information for our canna-curious or lifers looking to learn more. They are the aromatic compounds found in plants or the things that give cannabis its particular smell. The neat part about terpenes is that they also have some powerful therapeutic benefits. While THC is what takes us off the ground, terpenes can help bring us to where we’re trying to go.
Here Are a Few of the Common Terpenes in Cannabis:
1) Myrcene: smells spicy, earthy and musky. Therapeutic benefits can include pain reduction, sedative, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant.
2) Beta-caryophyllene: smells peppery and spicy. Therapeutic benefits can include anti-inflammatory, gastroprotective (who has gut stuff??) and neuroprotective. Concussions anyone?
3) Limonene: smells like citrus. There is research right now on its neuroprotective role in neurodegenerative diseases like epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, MS and stroke. If you’ve also spent time researching concussions, TBIs or CTE and symptoms like memory loss, behavioural changes, mood swings or basic motor skill reduction like balance, find more limonene dominant strains.
4) Pinene: smells like pine trees or the woods. Therapeutic benefits can include anti-inflammatory, anticonvulsant, pain reduction, memory and relaxation.
Showcasing the Sports Cannabis Community and their strains:
Mike James
Lion Order. Island Sunshine for Myrcene and Beta-Caryophyllene.
Ricky Williams
Highsman. London Pound Cake for Myrcene and Limonene.
Bo Scaife
All Pro Farms. Bubble Bath buds for Limonene and Pinene.
Where to buy? Pop on over to Weedmaps or Leafly!
From Me To You: Start low and go slow! If you’re new to cannabis or edibles, start with just a little bit. If you have food allergies, please remember that terpenes might have a negative effect. For example, if you’re allergic to mangoes, a strain including myrcene could affect your allergies. A new thing I learned while reaching for this piece: if you experience gnarly PTSD, reduce or remove strains that are high in pinene. Pinene helps with memory and if your cannabis consumption is no longer therapeutic and causing extra anxiety, look at the terpene profile found in the COA or have a quick chat with your grower about the strain history.
References:
Sommano SR, Chittasupho C, Ruksiriwanich W, Jantrawut P. The Cannabis Terpenes. Molecules. 2020 Dec 8;25(24):5792. doi: 10.3390/molecules25245792. PMID: 33302574; PMCID: PMC7763918.
Surendran S, Qassadi F, Surendran G, Lilley D, Heinrich M. Myrcene-What Are the Potential Health Benefits of This Flavouring and Aroma Agent? Front Nutr. 2021 Jul 19;8:699666. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2021.699666. PMID: 34350208; PMCID: PMC8326332.
Dos Santos ÉRQ, Maia JGS, Fontes-Júnior EA, do Socorro Ferraz Maia C. Linalool as a Therapeutic and Medicinal Tool in Depression Treatment: A Review. Curr Neuropharmacol. 2022;20(6):1073-1092. doi: 10.2174/1570159X19666210920094504. PMID: 34544345; PMCID: PMC9886818.
Machado KDC, Islam MT, Ali ES, Rouf R, Uddin SJ, Dev S, Shilpi JA, Shill MC, Reza HM, Das AK, Shaw S, Mubarak MS, Mishra SK, Melo-Cavalcante AAC. A systematic review on the neuroprotective perspectives of beta-caryophyllene. Phytother Res. 2018 Dec;32(12):237602388. doi: 10.1002/ptr6199. Epub 2018 Oct 3. PMID: 30281175.
Eddin LB, Jha NK, Meeran MFN, Kesari KK, Beiram R, Ojha S. Neuroprotective Potential of Limonene and Limonene Containing Natural Products. Molecules. 2021 Jul 27;26(15):4535. doi: 10.3390/molecules26154535. PMID: 34361686; PMCID: PMC8348102.
Salehi B, Upadhyay S, Erdogan Orhan I, Kumar Jugran A, L D Jayaweera S, A Dias D, Sharopov F, Taheri Y, Martins N, Baghalpour N, Cho WC, Sharifi-Rad J. Therapeutic Potential of α- and β- Pinene: A Miracle Gift of Nature. Biomolecules. 2019 Nov 14;9(11):738. doi: 10.3390/biom9110738. PMID: 31739596; PMCID: PMC6920849.
Akbar Hajizadeh Moghaddam, Fatemeh Malekzadeh Estalkhi, Sedigheh Khanjani Jelodar, Tabarek Ahmed Hasan, Soroush Farhadi-Pahnedari, Mohammad Karimian, Neuroprotective effects of alpha-pinene against behavioural deficits in ketamine-induced mice model of schizophrenia: Focusing on oxidative stress status, IBRO Neuroscience Reports, Volume 16, 2024, Pages 182-189, ISSN 2667-2421,
A seasoned professional, Bethany Semeiks, has an extensive background that includes a Master of Business Administration from the University of California, Irvine and a Master of Science in Cannabis Science and Therapeutics from the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy.
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