This Article is going to be about a misconception about CBD and Indica strains of cannabis. Have you ever heard from a friend, from someone in a dispensary or just someone that knows about cannabis and likes to talk about it, that Indica strains are typically associated with being more sedative and more heavy kind of like a body effect rather than a stimulating cerebral effect (which Sativas are associated with)?.
We are not getting into the Sativa versus Indica debate, because that is an endless discussion. But the way that Sativas are typically referenced are strains of cannabis that are uplifting and more energetic and Indicas are strains of cannabis that are typically more heavy, sedating and good for sleep and pain relief. And it’s been thought that those Indica strains are actually high in CBD. This is what we thought too.
The misconception that Indicas are typically high in CBD
What we have found in the book “Cannabis Pharmacy by Michael Backes” is, that the misconception that Indica Strains are typically high in CBD comes from the misconception that CBD is sedating.
We wrote about, that in low doses, CBD, at least as far as studies go, seem to be activating or energy inspired like stimulating, whereas higher dose of CBD can be sedating.
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Introducing the terpene myrcene
The Indica strains tend to be high in a terpene called Myrcene. In fact, the breeding of Indica strains in the 1960s is what introduced a lot of the Myrcene that we have in the gene pool of cannabis today.
The terpene Myrcene is that terpene that is in a lot of cannabis strains and it is in hops too, which beer is made from. This terpene tends to be sedating and helpful for sleep but not necessarily very good for daytime use for some people. According to this book, that’s where the misconception comes from.
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If CBD and Indicas make you sleepy, then Indicas must have a lot of CBD
People associate CBD with being sedating, makes you sleepy, and they think that Indica strains must be high in CBD. But that’s actually not necessarily the case.
Some Indica strains they do have CBD but they’re still dominantly predominantly THC over the CBD. And of course Myrcene is playing a role there.
So, if you’re trying to avoid that sedative effect try to avoid cannabis that are high in the terpene Myrcene. If that’s the dominant terpene in there you might want to avoid it.
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It’s the Terpene Myrcene in Indicas that makes you sleepy
But again, for some people CBD helps them sleep, so they do find the effects of CBD to be sedating. Everyone will vary a little bit on there.
But the idea that the more sedative product is thought to have higher CBD (it’s not out of nowhere, there is some reasoning behind it) is according to Michael Backes and his research in his book “cannabis pharmacy” the cannbis strains with a high amount of the terpene Myrcene.
And apparently many Indica Strains are supposed to have this terpene. But Indica strains are not necessarily high in CBD. And what’s thought to be high in CBD or the effect from that is actually being caused by Myrcene.
CBD dosage effects
CBD on the other hand can be alerting and stimulating for some people at the lower dose range. On the higher dose range it has been shown to be sedative and that can be good for people who are using it actually for insomnia. Of course which a lot of people do use CBD for.
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Conclusion
At the end of the day, any cannabis product whatever the name is, is not as specific and precise as seeing the lab report. And seeing what actual terpenes are in there, what actual cannabinoids are in there, what percentages, what’s the dominant cannabinoid, what’s the dominant terpene.
That’s one of the best ways to really know what you’re using, instead of relying on just the name or what you’re being told it’s called or what you’re being told it’s in it. At the end of the day the lab report really is the best measure of what the product is and how it will affect you.
