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FIGURE 2-1: The hemp plant.
Seeds: Hemp seeds are generally considered a superfood, chock full of protein and fiber. They also contain a host of other medically appreciated benefits. You can find minerals, healthy fats such as omega-3s, and vitamins including magnesium and vitamins B6 and E in hemp seeds; all of these are essential to a healthy system. Fuel, food, and oil are also derivatives of the seeds when they can be processed in large quantities.
Stalks: The stalks are the most vital part of the plant for fiber production; they’re where the ropes, canvas, and paper I mention in the preceding section ultimately hail from. The fiber is an ingredient in compost and can be used for animal bedding and for insulation purposes. The more hemp is cultivated in modern times, the more uses are starting to pop up across industries. Because of the interest in creating fiber, hemp plants are grown tightly packed in fields so they stretch to the sun, creating long stalks much like bamboo.
Roots: The roots are incredible bioremediators, meaning they can help extract toxins from the ground around them. They can also break up troublesome hard soil, making it more manageable. They contain an incredible concentration of the healing compounds in hemp.
Leaves: Hemp leaves contain vital cannabinoids, although not as plentifully as the flowers do. Additionally, when the leaves are raw and fresh, rather than dried, they contain potentially vital cannabinoids, terpenes, and other properties of nutritional value. The fibrous hemp leaves are better served up as edible nutrient fiber. Contemporary uses including juicing to extract these vital nutrients.
Flower: Hemp, like its other cannabis counterpart, produces a flower (the bud) when grown to full term. Dispensaries sell it as a CBD flower. Hemp flowers are rich in all the plant chemicals, including terpenes, flavonoids, and cannabinoids, and are smokable. They’re also the principal source for extracts because of their high concentration of potent plant chemicals. (Fun fact: The hemp flower is more sought-after and has a higher price point than a lot of the THC flowers on the consumer market.)
Explaining the Parts to the Whole
Plant chemicals, or phytochemicals, have a lot of jobs. They contribute to the flavors, tastes, smells, and colors of the plant. Ultimately, they exist to help the survival of the plant itself.
The functions of plant chemicals — microbial resistance, reduction of inflammatory response, fungal protection, and more — are transferrable. That’s why you’re supposed to eat so many vegetables: Phytochemicals can dually protect plants and humans from unhealthy risks. (So, spoiler alert, your mother was right — eat your leafy greens!) Major plant chemicals in hemp include terpenes, flavonoids (color and flavor contributors), more than 120 cannabinoids, and the enzymes that make the chemical reactions possible.
Debating the benefits of using the whole plant versus the sum of its parts
The entourage effect is the predominant philosophy in the world of hemp and marijuana. Many believe that you need to have the whole plant (or all the pieces of the plant in their respective ratios, as they originate in a single plant) to get the most beneficial therapeutic effects.
That said, generations and cultures around the world have harnessed different pieces of all plants for different purposes. For example, kava plants are prized for their roots, which have intensely calming effects. Folk remedies tout the benefits of certain plants for their ability to heal certain parts of the human body. They often equate a plant’s physical resemblance to a specific body part to the plant’s use as a specialized remedy for that body part. And because science has evolved to be able to study the realities of those applications, more knowledge about the uses of the pieces is available than ever before.
Appreciating all the cannabinoids in the hemp plant
Cannabinoids are the chemicals most specific to the hemp and cannabis plants because they’re almost unduplicated in any other plant. More than 120 cannabinoids occur naturally in the hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) plant; this book focuses on CBD, but others are certainly worth a visit.
Here are the essential chemicals you need to know:
Cannabidiol (CBD): CBD is the most abundant cannabinoid in the hemp plant; it’s recognized for its anti-inflammatory, pain relief, antimicrobial, and antifungal properties, among others. CBD is also non-inebriating. Just a reminder.
Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC): THC is the cannabinoid known for its illicit history, all thanks to its psychoactive nature. Medically, it’s gaining acclaim for its pain relief properties, making it an exciting candidate for treating pain conditions.
Cannabichromene (CBC): CBC has been wildly less studied, but it may lend itself chronic pain relief because of its ability to block the perception of pain.
Cannabinol (CBN): CBN is what you get when THC degenerates from long-term exposure to oxygen. Studies show that it may help treat insomnia and other sleep disorders because of its effects on certain brain receptors.
Cannabigerol (CBG): The medical implications of CBG are actually quite exciting. Cultivation for CBG is on the rise thanks to hopes of treating conditions from digestive disorders to eye disease.
Exploring terpenes and flavonoids
Terpenes are present in many life forms — around 20,000 plants and animals. They’re a major player in the cannabis plant because hundreds appear in such high concentrations.
GETTING MORE FAMILIAR WITH TERPENES
With all this talk about terpenes, how about a look at some of the more common terpenes? The following chart represents some of the better-known terpenes that can be found in cannabis, hemp, and a host of other botanicals. Beyond naming the terpenes, I also outline the effects each terpene has on the body and the associated medical benefits. The aroma is one of the most identifying characteristics of a terpene, and sometimes, just by smelling a plant, you can tell the terpene profile, so just for fun, I have included the scent and a few other plants where you can find the terpene. Take a look at the chart, then test your nose on the mentioned plants.
Courtesy of Poplar
Terpenes have a lot of functions in plants. They can protect a plant from disease and act as an antimicrobial,
