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All you need to know about Delta-8-THC

All strains / Cannabis / How to choose / Hybrid / Indica / Sativa / THC / February 18, 2021

Chances are that if you’ve heard of cannabis, you’ve heard of THC. At a very high level, THC is a chemical substance present in cannabis flower that has psychoactive effects when smoked, eaten, or otherwise ingested.

More specifically, the THC we are all familiar with in this sense is Delta-9-THC and it has quite a reputation among lawmakers. That’s because those psychoactive effects can have serious consequences when interacting with other substances or in our daily lives and activities. However, the effects of THC are not all bad. The compound can relieve several conditions that plague people every day. So, the distinction has to be made between medicine and malady in the eyes of regulators.

Synthetic copies of THC, such as Dronabinol, have been used since the 1980s. These compounds treat nausea and stimulate appetite for chemotherapy patients just like the real thing. However, some people just prefer a natural source for their medicine.

CBD offered another source of these reliefs, but CBD doesn’t have the same somatic effect as THC. Some patients do benefit from those body effects and even stress-relieving psychoactive effects of Delta-9-THC. This brings us back to the point of this article, Delta-8-THC.

What is Delta-8-THC?

Delta-8-THC is a lesser-known cannabinoid present in cannabis plants. There are at least 144 different cannabinoids in cannabis, with each producing varied effects in humans. These cannabinoids are responsible for the way cannabis makes people feel when they use it.

The National Cancer Institute defines delta-8-THC as:

“An analogue of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) with antiemetic, anxiolytic, appetite-stimulating, analgesic, and neuroprotective properties. [Delta-8-THC] binds to the cannabinoid G-protein coupled receptor CB1, located in the central nervous system…This agent exhibits a lower psychotropic potency than [delta-9-THC], the primary form of THC found in cannabis.”

Delta-8-THC is unique in that it is understood to produce many of the same effects as Delta-9-THC with about half the potency. Not only this, but many who have used the substance report that Delta-8THC provides a smoother experience, produces fewer instances of anxiety, and has fewer psychoactive effects overall. That said, the medical benefits of Delta-8-THC appear to surpass Delta-9, namely in the realm of pain relief.

Based on these findings, Delta-8-THC has quickly stolen the spotlight. Not just for these qualities mentioned above. The substance can be produced as a distillate, one example of which is currently being produced by Oleum Extracts in Washington State.

One can come to the reasonable conclusion that Delta-8-THC will quickly reach a level of popularity observed in CBD products over the last 5 years. Still, the substance has not been studied as extensively by scientists

Delta-8-THC Regulations And Legal Status

We can gather from anecdotal sources and the limited research available that Delta-8-THC produces many of the same effects as Delta-9-THC with less intensity.

At the moment, Delta-8-THC finds itself in a bit of regulatory limbo. In the eyes of the federal government, Delta-9-THC remains illegal. It is listed as a Schedule I narcotic. That means as far as the government is concerned, Delta-9 has no medical value and is listed among the ranks of heroin and LSD. This is also why, until recently, there has been so little research conducted on THC and other cannabinoids.

With that in mind, no legislation designates Delta-8-THC one way or the other. However, it could be assumed that Delta-8THC derived from Cannabis Sativa, Indica, or Ruderalis will overstep the legal grey area into the red.

Since there is no explicit law banning products made of Delta-8-THC Distillate derived from Hemp some producers are lunging at the opportunity to bring a legal near-identical THC product to market. These products can come in the form of like vape cartridges, concentrates, and edibles.

According to this Rolling Stone Magazine article on the topic of Delta-8-THC, it wasn’t until September 2019 that any retailer had actually sold Delta-8-THC. Now, those products are much more widely available as confidence in the protections provided by the 2018 Farm Bill increases for Hemp-derived Delta-8.

Delta-8-THC Medical Uses and Observations

For those curious enough to try Delta-8, it’s worth noting there are plenty of ailments this substance can treat.

Delta-8-THC was found to reduce pain and inflammation in mice that had sustained corneal injury. The results of the 2018 study on pain management and anti-inflammatory effects we published in “Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research”. During the research, Delta-8 was applied topically to the affected areas and the observed effects included reduced pain and inflammation via CB1 receptors in the test subjects.

The US National Library of Medicine has determined that delta-8-THC exhibits anxiety-reducing qualities similar to Delta-9. Unfortunately, there’s not a lot of research to back that up, but many anecdotal testimonials exist to reassert that claim. Those same reports add that Delta-8-THC provides a calm and focused experience without the anxiety commonly associated with Delta-9-THC.

Life Sciences magazine published a study that recounts the experience of eight pediatric cancer patients using Delta-8-THC over two years. The study found that vomiting was virtually non-existent in those patients that had ingested Delta-8 before and for 24-hours following cancer treatments.

When it comes to the issue of appetite, Delta-8-THC may offer stimulation even greater than that of the fabled “munchies” caused by Delta-9-THC consumption. “Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior” published research conducted on mice that followed the effects of Delta-8 and appetite stimulation over 50 days. The research showed that mice taking Delta-8 consumed as much as 22% more than the control group.

Warnings for Delta-8-THC

While Delta-8-THC may appear to be a clear winner for medical and recreational use, there is still little known about this substance.

Not only this, but most cannabis plants contain a very limited quantity of this cannabinoid. That means a large amount of plant material needs to be processed to extract and refine even a modest amount of Delta-8. How a manufacturer completes this process is not regulated and can involve volatile chemicals you may not want in your body.

Companies may combine Delta-8-THC with Delta-9-THC and/or CBD if they are not committed to making a Delta-8 isolate.

With this in mind, it would be prudent to request a third-party lab report of the product before use.

 

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