Major Interest in Minor Cannabinoids

Cannabis producers and consumers have both been faced with a great deal of learning curves over the last 10 years. From newer users learning about indica & sativa classifications at the dawn of the regulated cannabis economy, to medical patients learning about CBD ratios, to more seasoned users learning about the nuances of various concentrates, to cannabis brands pushing to replace indica & sativa with terpene profiles… everyone who buys or sells weed has had to deepen their knowledge of cannabis products at least once a year over the last decade. One of the more recent developments in the cannabis space has been the scaled production of minor cannabinoids, leading to a wave of new products that contain CBN, CBG, CBC, and THCV, all of which had only been found in trace amounts up until this point.

Admittedly, learning about these minor cannabinoids can be confusing and somewhat tedious, especially when we get into the inevitable discussions of which neuroreceptors that they act on. Speaking of which, please keep the following in mind:

• THC binds to CB1 receptors of your body’s endocannabinoid system, which makes you high
• CBD binds to CB2 receptors, which mostly affect immune system functions without causing intoxication.

Some folks like myself would much rather smoke a bowl and not deal with this sort of extracurricular biology & chemistry homework, but hopefully the two of us will be able to get through this subject together and leave with a better understanding of minor cannabinoids. We gon’ learn today!

 

How are minor cannabinoids produced?

The first question we should answer is how these minor cannabinoids are so prevalent all of the sudden; If they’re only found in trace amounts in cannabis flower, then where are all these minor cannabinoids coming from? The answer is biomass.

Farmers have been growing CBD-rich hemp cultivars for years now, and biomass is essentially the stalks, stems, leaves, and sometimes buds of a hemp plant. By definition, these hemp plants contain low amounts of THC, so physically there is more room for greater amounts of minor cannabinoids, and these hemp plants are also selectively bred to produce more CBG, CBC, and so on.

The process for isolating minor cannabinoids from biomass typically entails extraction using a solvent (ethanol, supercritical CO2, butane, etc), extract dissolution (purging the solvent), winterization (removing waxes and lipids), then distillation or isolation. There are obviously more steps and details to consider when extracting CBG, CBN, and other minor cannabinoids, but the purpose of this section is not so much to give a complete “how to” guide as it is to give you a high level understanding of how it’s even possible to scale production for these previously rare cannabinoids.

 

Cannabigerol (CBG)

Cannabigerol (CBG) is sometimes referred to as “the mother of all cannabinoids,” as it is the chemical precursor to THC and CBD (well, technically CBGA is the precursor, and it breaks down into THCA and CBDA, and only a trace amount of CBG remains after this process occurs). The medicinal benefits of CBG are still being studied, but research indicates that it can bind to both the CB1 receptor and CB2 receptors, meaning CBG interacts with the body’s internal systems, but also has the ability to counteract the effects of THC. It should also be noted that CBG is a non-intoxicating cannabinoid even though it binds to the same neuroreceptors as THC.

When it comes to the benefits of CBG, early studies show that it shares many of the same benefits of other cannabinoids, such as reducing inflammation, reducing intraocular pressure, and stimulating appetite. So what? Couldn’t we consume any existing cannabis products for those benefits? What’s so special about CBG then? Without being a clinician or a professional cannabinoid researcher who better understands the nuances of neuroreceptors, it would appear that the unique trait of CBG is that it can improve symptoms of adult ADHD when combined with CBD.

More interestingly, anecdotal evidence as well as some [admittedly sparse] research of CBG usage shows potential for helping with depression, anxiety, pain, and even insomnia. The results of a study published in 2022 says that 73.9% of their 127 participants “claimed superiority of CBG-predominant cannabis over conventional medicines for chronic pain, 80% for depression, 73% for insomnia, and 78.3% for anxiety.” Keep in mind that this data is self reported from a small sample size, and clinical studies for CBG are still lacking.

 

Purported effects of CBG:

• Reduces feelings of anxiety, depression, and insomnia
• Improves symptoms of ADHD & autism
• Alleviates pain
• Reduces inflammation
• Reduces intraocular pressure
• Stimulates appetite

 

CBG products we currently carry:

1. CBG Mystery Machine prerolls by Seattle Bubble Works
2. Sweet Watermelon 2:1 Fly Wildside Fizz drink by Green Revolution
3. Recover all-in-one vape by Balance by Mfused
4. Tranquility all-in-one vape by Balance by Mfused
5. CBG 2:1 Pineapple Orange Guava fruit chews by Hi-Burst
6. Pink Lemonade gummies by Swifts
7. 1:1:1 CBG Pineapple Gravity Gummies by Constellation Cannabis
8. CBG 1:1 Guava gummies by Marmas
9. Pear 1:1 CBG + hybrid enhanced gummies by WYLD
10. Ratio 1:1:1 Capsules by Fairwinds
11. Relief Aid tincture by Polite
12. 1:1:1 Flow Cream topical by Fairwinds
13. 1:1:1:1 Happiest Self tincture by Green Revolution
14. AM Defense tincture by Fairwinds
15. 2:1:1 Blueberry Lemon Doozies plus Lion’s Mane by Green Revolution

Products containing minor cannabinoids often feature ratios (1:1, 2:1, etc) on their packaging; If you’re less familiar with ratios, please check out our blog entitled How Do CBD Ratios Work?

 

Cannabinol (CBN)

Cannabinol (CBN) is produced when THC degrades over time, and is best known for its purported sedative properties. If you’ve ever had old weed that made you pass out right away, that might be because much of the THC degraded into CBN. That being said, some cannabis scientists have recently stated that there isn’t enough concrete evidence of CBN being an effective sleep aid— only anecdotal data— but you will find that many users of CBN gummies or tinctures swear by their efficacy, including many people on our staff. While people also use CBN to alleviate pain and anxiety as they would with CBD, help with sleep is really the main reason people use CBN.

CBN binds more strongly to the CB2 receptor; It’s typically referred to as a non-intoxicating cannabinoid, though this is not an accurate description, as larger doses of CBN produces mild psychoactive reactions. WebMD has described CBN as being “25% as effective as THC,” though I believe they only mean in terms of intoxication.

 

Purported effects of CBN:

• Aids sleep
• Reduces feelings of anxiety
• Alleviates pain
• Stimulates appetite

 

CBN products we currently carry:

1. CBN Charlotte’s Web prerolls by Seattle Bubble Works
2. Sleepen™ all-in-one vape by Balance by Mfused
3. 2:1:1 Pineapple Dreams Pioneer Squares by Craft Elixirs
4. CBN 2:1 Wildberry Lavender gummies by Marmas
5. 2:1:1 Grape Dream shots by RATIO – WA
6. CBN 1:1 Black Cherry Moonshots by Constellation Cannabis
7. Elderberry 2:1 CBN + Indica Enhanced gummies by WYLD
8. Boysenberry 1:1:1 CBD:CBN + indica enhanced gummies by WYLD
9. 1:1:1 CBN Blueberry Gravity Gummies by Constellation Cannabis
10. High CBN RSO by Double Delicious
11. Deeper Sleep + CBN inhaler by Fairwinds Cannabis
12. 1:1:1 + Melatonin Dream Drops tincture by Green Revolution
13. PM Defense tincture by Fairwinds
14. Beauty Sleep 4:2:1 Chill tincture by Green Revolution

 

Cannabichromene (CBC)

Another non-intoxicating cannabinoid (because it binds poorly to the CB1 receptor), cannabichromene (CBC) binds to other receptors in the body such as the vanilloid receptor 1 and— oh geez this sounds boring, please don’t give up on me yet— the transient receptor potential ankyrin 1. Both of those receptors are associated with pain perception.

Aside from all the talk about receptors, one of the most mind-numbing parts about researching minor cannabinoids is the amount of overlap with major cannabinoids. “Oh wow, CBC reduces inflammation like every other friggin’ cannabinoid. Golly gee, I can’t believe it improves depression symptoms like every other cannabinoid too.” The limited research available to us at this point is repetitive and often unsurprising. But here’s a factoid that nobody was expecting: cannabichromene, which already sounds like it could be some sort of expensive facial serum, is useful for preventing acne. I’ll spare you the biology lesson, but CBC may legit be an essential ingredient in the beauty industry one day!

 

Purported effects of CBC:

• Reduces feelings of depression
• Alleviates pain
• Prevents acne
• Reduces inflammation
• Stimulates appetite

 

CBC products we currently carry:

1. Blood Orange 1:1 CBC + Sativa enhanced gummies by WYLD
2. CBC 1:1 Orange Cream Wildside Max shot by Green Revolution
3. MDI Dutch Treat + CBC inhaler by Passion Flower
4. 1:1:1:1 Happiest Self tincture by Green Revolution
5. Strawberry 1:1 Elevate Doozies by Green Revolution
6. 2:1 CBC Sour Raspberry jellies by Journeyman
7. 2:1:1 Rainier Cherry Doozies plus Ashwagandha by Green Revolution

 

∆9-tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV)

Possibly the most sought after minor cannabinoid, ∆9-tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV) has only ever been found in trace amounts in African landrace sativas like Durban Poison. An analogue of the more familiar ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main draw for THCV is that it appears to be useful for suppressing appetite, as opposed to stimulating it. One study in 2013 found that THCV could even help with reducing glucose intolerance related to obesity. For these reasons, some people have nicknamed THCV “diet weed” or “skinny weed.” I’d also like to throw “weedzempic” into the ring for your consideration, though honestly these nicknames all make THCV sound like snake oil, and we should avoid using them.

Sativa divas already inclined to seek out African landrace strains will appreciate that the psychoactive effect of THCV [in higher doses] is said to be more clear headed and energizing than standard THC, though there currently isn’t much evidence to support this claim. One company recently touted their double blind study which claimed that 20% of their participants felt more energized after consuming THCV edibles (though 20% is an unimpressive proportion, and the fact that the study was funded by the company selling the product means that this claim should be taken with a big grain of salt).

As of this writing, THCV is still pretty hard to come by in Washington, but perhaps this will change in the coming years as savvy hemp farmers breed African landrace or THCV-rich cannabis cultivars with CBD-rich hemp varietals to produce biomass with higher concentrations of THCV.

 

Purported effects of THCV:

• Curbs appetite
• Reduces panic attacks
• Increases satiety (feeling of satisfaction)
• May help with diabetes

 

THCV products we currently carry:

1. Energy all-in-one vape by Mfused
2. Durban Poison by Emerald City Growers

 

Conclusion

So far our understanding of these minor cannabinoids is incomplete, confusing, and occasionally contradictory. Hopefully you’ll walk away from this article knowing that there is potential for these minor cannabinoids to be helpful for both physical and mental health, but most of the existing studies are less than groundbreaking, and above all it seems that minor cannabinoids are more useful when used in conjunction with CBD and THC.

This is not to say that the inclusion of CBN, CBG, CBC, and THCV in cannabis products is empty hype, but that their benefits—as with the benefits of CBD, terpenes, and other components of cannabis—are likely being overstated at the present. Knowing this shouldn’t negate the anecdotal data about the efficacy of minor cannabinoids, however, because if one perceives that something is working well for them (without it causing harm to them or others), then that’s all that matters. But don’t take that as medical advice… I’m just a stoner, not a doctor.
Products containing CBG, CBN, CBC, and THCV are worth experimenting with, and currently the only way to gauge their efficacy is to try them for yourself!