Delta 8 THC
What Is Delta-8-THC?
According to the National Cancer Institute, delta-8-THC can be defined 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 chemically different from delta-9-THC by only a few atomic bonds and still offers a potent high of its own. While delta-8-THC only exists naturally in fractions of a percent, companies are finding value in concentrating esoteric cannabinoids for their unique effects and applications. The 2018 Farm Bill legalized all hemp production and everything in the composition of hemp other than Delta-9 THC, of which hemp must contain below 0.3%. This is the standard for hemp on the federal level, so CBD, CBC, and every other cannabinoid other than Delta-9 THC, including Delta-8THC, are legal.
The efficacy and stability of delta-8-THC make it an extremely valuable cannabis-derived chemical compound. The distillate’s benefits and effects serve both medical and recreational consumers alike, and it illustrates the power of individual chemical constituents within cannabis. As science defines and refines the applications for cannabis’s eclectic collection of cannabinoids, we will benefit, one puff at a time.
