What’s in your cannabis? If you’ve purchased marijuana from a pharmacy or dispensary, you’ve probably noticed the information provided on the packaging.
At a minimum, the product is likely to be labeled with the percentages of THC and CBD it contains. Many cannabis companies are also listing the percentages for minor cannabinoids like CBC and CBN in their products.
It’s certainly nice to know these percentages when choosing a medication, but the packaging often provides little to no information about the terpenes in the product.
Terpenes are the organic compounds responsible for the unique aromas and some of the therapeutic effects of cannabis and other plants.
You can do your own research about the terpene profile for a particular strain but, as cannabis pharmacist Kylee Shumway notes, individual plants will always have slight variations in their chemical makeup.
Review the free Medical Cannabis education guides at utahmarijuana.org/medical-cannabis-guides for details on cannabinoids, terpenes, activation temperatures, and other fascinating subjects!
ABOUT US
Tim Pickett, PA-C is a Medical Cannabis expert and the founder of Utah Therapeutic Health Center. As a Qualified Medical Provider, Tim works directly with patients in need of Medical Marijuana recommendations and treatment plans. Salt Lake City Weekly readers voted Tim Utah’s Best Medical Cannabis Doctor (QMP) in its “2021 Best of Utah mind and body” edition.
Blake Smith is the Chief Science Officer at Zion Pharmaceuticals and an expert in the biochemistry of cannabis. Blake has a keen understanding of cannabinoid compounds and their effects on the human body’s endocannabinoid system (ECS).
Kylee Shumway is the Pharmacist in Charge at WholesomeCo, a Medical Cannabis pharmacy in Bountiful. Her interest in cannabis medicine also began in college, when an organic chemistry professor sometimes mentioned the compounds in marijuana.
For more information on getting a Utah Medical Marijuana card or Utah marijuana laws, visit https://utahmarijuana.org.
Learn more about cannabis strains available in Utah at https://zionmedicinal.com.
Find a Medical Cannabis pharmacy near you at https://utahmarijuana.org/dispensary
