- I am Amber Wise,
I am a cannabis scientist,
and I'm here today
to answer your questions from Twitter.
This is Cannabis Support.
[upbeat music]
From @Im_FeliciaHOE.
"It's okay to smoke weed.
But everyday?"
Some people use cannabis
to modulate neurodivergent behavior.
Some people use it medically
in order to get out of bed
and reduce their pain.
Some people use it for arthritis,
and these are daily applications.
And there are zero deaths
attributed to natural cannabis use.
Some would argue
that getting high every day
is potentially safer
than getting drunk every day.
From 50 Shades of Green.
"Why does weed cause the munchies?"
Cannabinoids and THC actually stimulate
the release of our hunger molecule
called "ghrelin",
a hormone that makes us feel hungry.
Cannabinoids can also heighten
your sense of smell and taste,
so not only do you feel more hungry,
but those Doritos can also taste better.
Next up, @Rapid_RNR asks,
"Did you know the human body
naturally produces cannabinoids?"
The thing is,
our body does make cannabinoid molecules
but they're not the same ones
that the plant makes.
These molecules regulate
almost every aspect of our biochemistry:
mood, sleepiness and awakeness,
how hunger you are,
your metabolism rates,
your energy levels.
We call this now
the "endo cannabinoid system".
The reason that we react
to the cannabinoids that the plant makes
are because those molecules
also bind to the same receptors
that our body has in our endocannabinoid system.
From @terrible_tony.
"Is it me or is the weed out here
getting stronger?"
Humans are now selectively breeding cannabis
and have been for a long time
to make more cannabinoids in the flower.
Flower from 30, 40 years ago
has fewer cannabinoids
than the flower that's being grown today.
You might be going into retail stores
and seeing, you know,
a couple years ago labels saying
25% total THC in flower,
and now we're seeing 35 or maybe 40%
or even more than 40%.
Those numbers are not real.
There is a physical limit
to the amount that the plant can make.
30% is generally agreed upon
as the maximum amount
that you can get a flower to produce,
and that is like the danky-est sticky-icky
we're talking about.
The next question is from @alms_xo.
"Is weed a psychedelic?"
There are three terms I'd like to define
a little more clearly here.
We have: psychoactive,
psychotropic,
and we have psychedelic.
Psychoactive is anything
that reacts with your brain chemistry,
and that can be caffeine,
and that can be any number of things.
Psychotropic is somehow affecting
your perception of reality,
your mood, your awareness,
and sometimes perception of time.
And psychedelic is generally agreed upon
to include hallucinations
and drastic changes
in how you're perceiving reality.
In terms of the generally agreed upon
definition of psychedelic,
generally cannabinoids are not,
THC and CBD can be considered psychoactive,
they both interact with our brains.
And generally,
THC is considered psychotropic.
It can change our mood
and how we perceive reality.
From @anth_alvarado.
"Does CBD actually do anything?"
First I wanna show
how similar CBD and THC are
in terms of molecular structure.
They actually weigh the same
and have the same number of
carbons and hydrogens and oxygens.
The big difference
is that the ring structure here
is closed on the THC
and the ring is open here on the CBD.
That's the only difference.
However, we have it on paper here
so they both look flat.
In three dimensions,
the shape is quite different,
and that leads to
different behaviors in your body.
Purified CBD all by itself
is often not very effective
for whatever you might be seeking treatment for.
However, when we have
a more full spectrum mixture
of different molecules from the plant,
it can be much more effective
for a variety of different ailments.
From @filth_filler.
"Why do edibles hit different?"
Well, it's because it's actually
a different molecule
that your body is getting high from.
So, so far we've really only been
talking about Delta-9 THC,
and that's what happens when you inhale.
It goes directly
into your bloodstream from your lungs,
so you feel that effect quite quickly.
However, with edibles,
you first have to go through your stomach,
your intestines, through your liver,
and your liver attaches a hydroxy group
and causes a different molecule to form,
called "11-Hydroxy-THC".
That's why edibles hit different,
meaning they take longer,
and they also feel different
because it's a different molecule
interacting with those receptors in your body.
From @Jada_tonyra.
"What's the difference between
indoor and outdoor weed?"
This is a very hot topic,
and everybody falls
on one side or the other.
There was a recent study done
where they grew clones
from the same plant,
so genetically the same starting material.
Some of them were grown outdoors
in natural living soil.
Some of it was grown indoors
with potting soil and artificial lights.
And looking at the molecular profile
that the plant made,
the outdoor cannabis
had wider variety of cannabinoids,
it had more minor cannabinoids
and rare cannabinoids.
And the indoor often has
slightly higher yield,
and often more consistent molecular profiles.
So it really depends on what you're looking for,
and you can get quality
out of both types of situations.
From @cinnachurros.
"Why does weed smell like that?"
Cannabis has a distinctive smell,
and different strains do smell differently.
But you can often say
that that smells like weed.
Well, the answer is terpenes.
Terpenes are one of
the most widely found molecules
in the plant kingdom.
All kinds of plants and herbs
and spices and pine trees
have terpenes in them.
THC and CBD actually are odorless,
and in fact,
the drug dogs that are used to detect cannabis
are trained on terpene molecules.
And that skunky smell in cannabis is actually due
to sulfur-containing compounds
that were just very recently discovered.
From @RobbinsGroupLLC.
"What are cannabis trichomes
and why are they so important?"
Cannabis trichomes are actually
only found on the female structure of the flower,
and the trichomes are where
all of the cannabinoids and terpenes
are synthesized in the plant.
If you zoom in,
you'll see these trichomes
are these tiny little mushroom-shaped structures,
and within that round part
at the end of that stock,
that's the location
that the plant actually makes the cannabinoids,
THC, CBD, and the terpenes.
All in that one little head.
From @fangers0_0.
"Is there really a difference
between indica and sativa
or is it all in the head?"
The old adage is that indica
will make you feel "in da couch"
or relaxed or sleepy,
and sativas might make you
more creative or more energetic.
Recent studies actually show
that there is no molecular correlation
between the two,
in terms of the kinds of terpenes
or cannabinoid molecules that the plant makes,
so it might actually just be all in your head.
From @NextBigCrop.
"What effect does THC and CBD have
on your sleep and dreams?"
So in terms of falling asleep
and staying asleep,
THC and CBD in combination
seem to work quite well.
Cannabis and THC and cannabinoids
can help with falling asleep.
In terms of dreams,
there is evidence to suggest
that THC reduces your REM cycles,
which is the part where you remember
your dreams occurring.
But long-term users of cannabis
who stopped using
do report very vivid dreams coming back
after they're stopping using cannabis.
So there is definitely some effect
on what we remember during use
and after we stop using,
but we don't fully understand
the mechanisms there.
From @optimalnt1.
"Why does marijuana have THC?"
And the plant
doesn't actually make these molecules
for our benefit,
the plant benefits from making these molecules
what we call "secondary metabolites",
something that are not needed
for fundamental growth and function of plants,
but perform another function.
There is evidence to suggest
it protects against UV rays,
it protects potentially against pests,
and also things like antifungal
and antimicrobial properties.
@aaime99.
"Why does weed make you high?"
We used to think it was dopamine being released
but it's actually not true.
Science has shown
that it is this anandamide molecule
named for the Sanskrit word
"joy" or "bliss".
This molecule is released in our brain
and makes us feel happy.
Sometimes it can make us feel
anxious or moody
or paranoid as well.
It's determined by your biochemistry
and many other factors
including what other molecules are present
potentially in that cannabis.
The next question is from @dannytkane.
"Have we determined
if 'contact high' is a real thing?
Never in my life have I got a 'contact high'."
In terms of contact high,
we're gonna talk about,
you know,
inhaling secondhand smoke at a party, let's say.
One study that was done
with a bunch of folks
in a very unventilated room
where half the folks smoked joints constantly
and the other half is just sat there.
The people who did not smoke the joints
tested positive for THC
and said they felt a little high.
When they just ventilated the room,
the folks who did not smoke the joints
said they didn't feel much
and they also did not test positive for THC.
Whiffing the smell of cannabis
as you walk down the street,
you're totally fine.
But if your friends are hot boxing in the car,
you might run into some problems.
From @Kati3Whit3.
"What's the difference between
Delta 8, 9 and 10?"
To a chemist,
it's really just the position of a double bond.
This is Delta-9 THC,
and this is a double bond here
between the 9 and 10 carbon atoms here.
Delta-8 means this double bond
is just over here on the ring structure.
And Delta-10 means it's on a different position
on that same ring.
The big difference is that Delta-9 THC
is naturally produced by the plant,
and Delta-8 and Delta-10
are converted from either CBD molecules
or Delta-9.
The next question is from @ujanaraa.
"Aye why does weed make you laugh?"
Well, there is actually a mechanism
in that it makes more blood flow
to the prefrontal cortex of your brain,
which affects your moods.
It does increase
the endocannabinoid,
"bliss molecules" in our bodies,
the anandamide molecule that naturally exists.
So it's complicated,
but there is some chemistry behind it
making you laugh.
From @420WeedManJeff1.
"Question, does anybody know
where cannabis originated from,
and about how long ago?"
We used to say that cannabis came from
the Central Asian region,
usually around India,
and in fact, "cannabis indica",
indica suggests coming from India.
But it turns out genetic profiling
recently in the last couple of years
shows that it comes from East Asia
and eastern parts of China.
How long ago?
Well, plants predate humans.
There is evidence to suggest
that there was fiber type hemp
and cannabis being grown about 12,000 BC.
Psychotropic and spiritual use of cannabis
around 7,500 years ago,
and there have been documented evidence
of its medical and ritualistic use
for thousands of years
in various parts of the world.
Commercially available cannabis
is so highly bred
that it would be difficult
to kind of trace that back
or even be very recognizable
to sort of the origins of the cannabis plant.
The next question is from @martini_no_t.
"Why does weed
still need to give you dry mouth?
Do we have people working on this?
We need people working on this."
There are neurotransmitters in our brains
that cannabinoids interact with
that cause our saliva glands
to stop working as well as they should.
And it's not just smoking.
You can get cotton mouth
from edibles and tinctures as well.
In terms of
"we should have somebody working on this,"
this is one of the things that gets me excited
about the cannabis world of science,
is that there's so many unanswered questions
and potential areas for new research.
So somebody should get on that.
@PontiacMadeDDG.
"Is weed addictive?"
Addiction is generally defined
as a use disorder now,
and involves some sort of
physical withdrawal symptoms
when use is stopped.
There's an estimated
between 10 and 30% of cannabis users
end up with some sort of use disorder,
and certainly people seek treatment
for cannabis use disorder,
but it's generally much lower
than for other drugs of abuse
compared to the number of people
that use cannabis.
Cannabis is being shown to be a way
to get off of other types of drugs like opiates.
It's not an easy yes or no answer,
but generally much safer
than other types of recreational drugs out there.
From @Ashley_Logic.
"How exactly does marijuana help cancer,
multiple sclerosis,
and glaucoma?"
Specifically for cancer,
many people think that cannabis products
can reduce tumor growth,
and the clinical studies on that
are quite mixed, actually.
Cannabis has been shown
to help with the treatment of cancer
and a lot of the side effects
that come from chemotherapy and radiation,
making you feel hungry
which is important to keep your nutrition up,
and helping you sleep and relax,
which is good for healing,
and the nausea that you can sometimes get
with chemotherapy.
The glaucoma aspect
seems to be more short-term
and not really a cure.
Cannabis and THC
does reduce the interocular pressure.
Certainly there are many MS patients
that are being helped with specific formulations,
you know, under a doctor's care.
From @mikeinmaehia.
"So why is cannabis still classified
as a schedule 1 drug out of 5 schedules,
1 being the most dangerous?
Who is obstructing rescheduling?"
This is pretty much just a hangover
from the prohibition era.
Schedule 1 means there is no
accepted medical benefit,
which we know is not true anymore.
The DEA is the one that controls the scheduling,
and the FDA has purview over
all the food and drugs in the United States.
Currently they're sort of
pointing fingers at each other
and saying it's, you know,
one or the other's fault.
But it is important to remember
that rescheduling down to a different number
on the scheduling scale
is different than descheduling,
which is removing it altogether
from the scheduling scale.
In my opinion,
it would be better to deschedule altogether.
If you have it on the numbered schedule scale,
that pretty much limits it to pharmaceutical
and prescription applications only.
And there are also legal and social justice issues
that are wrapped up
in the scheduling system
versus removing it from that list altogether.
From @fat1bear.
"Why does weed turn purple?"
These purple molecules
are due to molecules
called "anthocyanins".
A lot of plants produce anthocyanins
when they are in cold environments.
Anthocyanins are also known
to be UV protectors.
So when there's too much sun,
these anthocyanin molecules
can absorb some of that extra UV energy.
So often we see more purple plants
when it's colder and more sunny,
and they can revert to being more green
when it warms up again.
But some of it is also due to genetics.
From @riverrockco.
"What's the difference between resin,
live resin, and rosin?"
Some people consider resin
to be a specific kind of extract
of the cannabis plant,
but resin can be used as a general term
for all kinds of sticky oils or extracts
that come from the plant itself.
Live resin is generally agreed upon
to be extracted from
fresh frozen plant material.
The cannabis plant
is grown and harvested like normal,
but it doesn't get dried,
it gets flash frozen.
And all of that water content
and original terpene profile is maintained.
And then rosin
is actually just pressed oil
from the plant itself.
So there's no solvents,
no extraction being done,
but heat and pressure being applied
to the dried flower buds
and the cannabinoids and terpenes
and other kind of oily plant molecules
oozing out as like a thick, oily substance.
All right, that's all the questions.
Hope you learned something,
and until next time.