Microdosing with Cannabis

Billee Sharp

In the twenty years since medical marijuana was legalized in California cannabis strains have become much stronger in THC content. Growers take two or more high THC strains and cross fertilize them. Certainly the THC rich strains available legally in California are very much stronger than the strains from thirty years ago. Most dispensaries offer some variety in the strength of THC strains but recreational use THC is in most demand and generally high THC is what is stocked. Dosages of high THC cannabis have been shown to have therapeutic value in pain mediation and anti-cancer protocols, but the psychoactive side effects deter many patients.

Luckily for the many of us who are reluctant to use high THC medications, there is a growing community of cannabis advocates and clinicians who are pushing for lower doses for therapeutic protocols. New research is yielding positive results from microdosing studies which deliver very small amounts of THC and other cannabinoids.

Low dosages are referred to as “microdoses” and this approach has been popularized by protocols for mental health issues which include microdosing psychedelics like LSD, MDMA or psilocybin.

Microdosing cannabis is taking small amounts of cannabis in order to reap the medical benefits of THC while avoiding its psychoactive effects that can interfere with the demands of daily life.

“Most people don’t know about microdosing,” says Michelle Ross, founder of IMPACT network, a nonprofit organization that uses medical research to find new cannabis-related treatments. “They just blast their system with cannabis or high amounts of THC, and that is not always the best approach for whatever condition they have.”

Many experts now believe that the threshold for the medical benefits of THC is far lower than many people think and that high doses can be counterproductive.

“When you raise the dose sometimes you get diminished benefits, and sometimes you get the opposite of what you are looking for,” says Dr Dustin Sulak, an osteopathic physician based in Maine who treats many of his patients with small doses of cannabis. For example, while a little cannabis can help reduce anxiety, too much can actually cause it.

According to Dr Sulak this is why many patients are now turning to microdosing in order to treat conditions such as depression, stress, anxiety, pain, and to help improve focus and promote sleep.

While more research is needed there are some clinical studies that suggest that less is in fact more when it comes to medicinal cannabis. In a 2012 study, patients with advanced cancer who were unresponsive to traditional opioid painkillers were given Nabiximols, a THC/CBD compound, at low, medium, and high doses. Patients who received the lowest dosage of cannabinoids showed the greatest reduction in pain, while those receiving higher doses actually experienced more pain.

In another study, a prison group of individuals were given low (four milligram) doses of Nabilone, a synthetic cannabinoid, to help treat their post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and its associated symptoms. The results, published in 2014, showed significant improvements in PTSD-associated insomnia, nightmares, general symptoms, and even chronic pain.

Cannabis can be effective for helping to control other chronic conditions. As we have seen with members of Synergy Wellness, multiple sclerosis can be controlled with daily microdoses of THC and CBD, larger doses are only administered to control painful flare-ups of symptoms.

Other Synergy members have established THC:CBD microdosing protocols for chronic health problems including neuropathy and fibromyalgia.

Microdosing is beneficial on a daily basis, a tiny sub-psychoactive dose of cannabis reduces stress, helps with mental focus and general sense of healthiness.

So how to discover your optimal dose of cannabis really depends entirely on you. Each individual has a THC tolerance level which can only be identified by the individual. The level of tolerance can be affected by individual differences in liver metabolism, genetics, previous usage, among other variables.

The goal is to find the dose that gives the most minimal noticeable effect. Microdosing is personal that way, everybody has to experiment until you find the dose that works.

As a rule of thumb, a microdose regime starts with a 2.5 mg dose and stays at that dose for two or three days. Particularly sensitive types can start even lower at 1mg if so desired. Cannabis tincture might be the simplest and most accurate form of microdosing cannabis, edibles tend to start at around 10 mg per serving so a cookie or gummi will have to be cut down which is difficult to get accurate. Vaping or smoking can be the method but again it is difficult to calibrate; one puff is the start point.

For those who use cannabis regularly, a microdose protocol would be initiated by a 48-hour of cannabis abstinence. This is enough time for the endocannabinoid system to reset. While this might seem like a brief moment after potentially years of usage, a brain imaging study published in 2022 tracked the number of cannabinoid receptors during a period of abstinence from cannabis. The results indicated that even in heavy smokers, the receptors bounced back to baseline levels after just two days.

After a 2- day cleanse, microdosers can gradually reintroduce cannabis into their system, starting with just one milligram.

The aim with cannabis microdosing is to have a therapeutic effect without psychoactivity, so the patient must try and notice the slightest psychotropic effect. When you do notice a slight effect, stay at this dose for a few days and add more slowly if needed. Most patients settle at a daily microdose of 1 to 3 mg, which is very modest.

Lower doses can actually lead to increased sensitivity to cannabis over time, underscoring the importance of staying at low levels for the first few days of microdosing. As you build tolerance to THC you also build tolerance to your own endocannabinoids which promote balance and health. A highly sensitive endocannabinoid system is extremely valuable for responding to systemic threats: illness, injury and stress, so a microdose regimen keeps the ECS ( Endocannabinoid System) primed with phytocannabinoids on a daily basis.

For somebody who uses cannabis irregularly or is just starting to use cannabis, 1 milligram of a 1:1 THC:CBD blend will further ease any psychoactive effect, the 1:1 microdose can gradually be increased until some alteration is felt, then stay at that level for four days.

Over time many people feel the need to increase their dose for effectiveness. When the microdose feels like it is not working any longer, that means that the optimal dose for the user has been passed. In a sense finding the optimal dose is established by means of going past it.

Microdosing may yet become the go-to method of maintaining endocannabinoid health, a daily microdose of cannabinoids to support the ECS , much like a multivitamin!

Sources:

“Rapid Changes in CB1 Receptors Availability in Cannabis Dependant Men after Abstinence from Cannabis”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4742341/

Use of a Synthetic Cannabinoid in a Correctional Population for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, related Insomnia, Nightmares,Chronic Pain

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4165471/

Nabiximols for Opioid-Treated Cancer Patients With Poorly-Controlled Chronic Pain: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Graded Dose Trial

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1526590012000193

It’s the End of Another Year. Time For a Course Correction?

By Dan Reich

The end of a calendar year graces us with two contradictory activities…holiday celebrations and New Year’s resolutions. The celebrations encourage us to put restraint aside, at least until New Year’s Day. Then we pledge, sometimes successfully, to establish new habits (new gym memberships spike in January) or to rein in whatever bad habits we might have allowed ourselves to slip into. Following are some common-sense tips that will enhance your health, as well as ways to enjoy cannabis as part of a healthier life in 2024.

Clean up your diet.

Food in this country as provided by mega-food processors is loaded with things that are harmful and light on things that nourish the body. Sugar and salt, especially in the amounts that a fast food hamburger contains, can lead to diabetes, hypertension, and a host of other health issues. Carbohydrates, often in the form of starchy or doughy food such as potatoes and pizza, contribute calories to our bodies and little else of value. Not to mention the scourge of sugary soft drinks or unpronounceable chemicals added as preservatives or flavor-extenders.

The best single strategy to combat this is to bypass the processing as much as you can. Usually, that means buying fresh ingredients and cooking it yourself. But if your market has a hot food section, from an actual kitchen, you can avoid a lot of processing. If you’re in a hurry for lunch, substitute a prepackaged salad for that sandwich. The most commonly consumed (and advertised) foods tend to favor meat, cheese and carbohydrates at the expense of vegetables. So steam yourself some veggies to go with that chicken breast or salmon.

Like to relax after dinner? Instead of another glass of wine, why not serve an elegantly simple dessert of French Vanilla ice cream topped by one of our cookie edibles in either chocolate (indica) or ginger (sativa). With 10 grams of THC per cookie, you’ll unwind in a whole new way.

Get More Exercise

It matters less what you do to exercise than the fact that you do it. Weights, pilates, cycling, walking…whatever floats your boat (or kayak) will help your body burn more calories, develop muscle strength and balance, and contribute to your overall good health. The key to a sustainable exercise program is to choose something that speaks to you. If you’re not motivated to engage in a particular activity, you’re not going to keep doing it. Perhaps you’re the competitive type...Pickleball might be just right for you. Like solitude? Take up hiking. Every form of exercise has its version of “runner’s high.”

And while you’re exercising, keep in mind that many studies have found that participants in some activities, such as running or cycling, experience more enjoyment when they combine it with cannabis. Whether you prefer flower, edibles, tinctures or vaping, bringing cannabis along will help insure that you enjoy the activity enough to make it a regular habit.

Touch Grass

The texture of modern life…screens, world conflict, technology, AI…can often be overwhelming. Experiencing nature on a regular basis can help mitigate the wear and tear that modern life imposes on us. Something as simple as watching the waves crashing on a beach or listening to the call of a bird in your backyard can connect us to something more primal and rewarding than checking your smartphone again.

You may find that nature is the gift that keeps on giving, and you return again and again. And as with exercise, you may discover that the experience is enhanced with cannabis.

Add More Music to Your Life

Music has amazing healing properties, and it’s never a bad idea to have a soundtrack to your life. You may have a music library on your phone that you can access from your living room or car. The right music can energize a workout, comfort you when you’re down, or soothe you when you’re anxious. It’s pretty hard to engage in road rage if you’re listening to Debussy or the Spa channel on satellite radio.

And again, there has been a lot of research that suggests that enjoying cannabis while listening to music enables the listener to notice different things about whatever they are listening to. Maybe they notice that percussion instrument in the background for the first time or how the guitarist adds vibrato to some of their notes. If you’ve never experienced this phenomenon I suggest you curl up with your favorite cannabis product and listen to one of your favorite recordings. I promise you will hear something in it that you never noticed before.

As you make your way through the journey that is life, may it lead you to greater health and happiness.

• • •

Sungrown Cannabis: Science Favors Nature

By Billee Sharp

Autumn has an air of completion about it, especially for those agriculturists and gardeners among us, who have just harvested their crops.

The traditional cannabis harvest in California runs from late September through October. Once the plants have been harvested the flowers must be carefully dried and cured before the harvest can be considered a success.

These days, much of California’s cannabis is grown indoors under artificial lights, which leads to multiple harvests instead of just one. The commercial advantages of indoor growing are obvious and indoor growing advocates argue that the controlled growing environment protects the plants from outdoor nuisances, namely insects and bad weather.

Indoor and outdoor cultivation are legal in California with the appropriate licenses and permits and both exist amicably side by side supplying the legal market.

However, for as many years as cannabis has been grown indoors there has been a lively debate about whether indoor or outdoor growing yields superior cannabis.

Finally, in January this year Molecules, the leading international, peer-reviewed, open access journal of chemistry, published a study by Columbia University that compares the two cultivation methods.

The study grew six genetically identical commercial plants from two different cultivars, Red Velvet and the unfortunately named, Cheetah Piss, with three plants of each strain outside and three inside. The outdoor samples were grown in raised beds using a mixture of all-natural, “living” soil and composts in full sunlight. The indoor samples were grown under artificial light in a proprietary growth medium.

At harvest, the researchers selected similar sized flowers from the top of the plants. They then tested the flowers using  gas chromatography with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to evaluate terpene composition, and ultra-performance liquid chromatography plus mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) to measure cannabinoids. These methods are the industry standard for testing cannabis.

Outdoor cannabis samples showed greater diversity of terpenes compared to indoor cannabis from the same genetic stock. In addition  the outdoor samples revealed a greater concentration of sesquiterpenes compared to the indoor samples. Sesquiterpenes, are terpenes that have an extra isoprene unit. The most common sesquiterpene is B-caryophyllene, the spicy flavored element, present not only in cannabis but also hops, black pepper and rosemary. Sesquiterpenes are larger than terpenes and tend to be more robust, maintaining their properties more reliably during drying and curing.

In terms of primary cannabinoid levels, levels of CBGA and CBDA were relatively similar between indoor and outdoor plants, while CBCA was slightly higher in the outdoor grow THCA was slightly lower.

Admittedly, the study has some shortcomings; it doesn’t take every cultivation variable into consideration, nor does it  measure differences in the nutrient value of the growing mediums nor compare temperature and humidity conditions.

Despite the limitations of the study the results make a credible case that certain conditions associated with outdoor growing may be favorable to terpene production and  protective of cannabinoid degradation through the presence of extra sesquiterpenes.

Indoor growers will gleefully point to the slightly higher ratio of THCA and thus THC of indoor plants, but THC levels are not the only yardstick that cannabis is measured by. Medical cannabis growers are keen for the broadest expression of terpenes and cannabinoids and outdoor growing conditions are conducive to this outcome.

At Synergy Wellness, outdoor cultivation has been central to the development of hybridized cannabis strains rich in CBD, CBG, CBN and THCV. As staunch believers in the benefits of broad spectrum cannabis, where cannabinoids act synergistically, we see the advantages of sunshine in our plants and products!

 Further Reading: Zandkarimi, Fereshteh et al. “Comparison of the Cannabinoid and Terpene Profiles in Commercial Cannabis from Natural and Artificial Cultivation.” Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) vol. 28,2 833. 13 Jan. 2023, doi:10.3390/molecules28020833