Anyone who uses CBG is familiar with what happens when you tell people what that acronym stands for. Once you start saying the word Cannabigerol, you immediately have to start fending off questions about what it is and explain how it is not the same as THC. CBG is something that we are only beginning to understand the true benefits of as its potentially pharmacological uses are still being explored.
There are so many potential applications for CBG, and studies are being conducted on how it can be used to treat nausea, pain and inflammation among other symptoms of serious illness.
We will get into that later on, but even people who know enough to not confuse CBG with THC might get a little muddled on the differences between CBG and CBD. After all, they are both non-intoxicating and non-psychoactive, but there are several key differences. If you want to learn more about what sets CBG apart from CBD, then read on…
What Is CBG?
CBG comes from the cannabis plant, just like CBD, but it is the building block from which CBD and THC grow. For anyone wondering what is CBG then this article puts it best. Both those compounds start out as CBG, because it is the very first cannabinoid that develops in the plant. It’s the equivalent of the stem cell, in other words. It is only found in very small concentrations. While you would typically find 25-30% of THC in a cannabis plant, and 20-25% of CBD, the quantity of CBG is as low as 1%. Which brings us to our next point…
CBG Needs To Be Extracted Early
It should not be a surprise given how the incredibly small the amounts of CBG found in a cannabis plant are, but one of the main reasons why the research that has been conducted on CBG is so limited is because it is much harder to extract. Another stumbling block for researchers is time.
CBD becomes stronger in cannabis plants over time, so there’s a nice long window for people to extract it. CBG is the opposite. It tends to be found in newer, younger cannabis plants and the concentration gets weaker as the plant gets older. Harvesting the plant at an early stage will guarantee a higher concentration of CBG but it means that farmers can’t sell the plant for any other purposes.
CBG Is Expensive To Extract
Then there’s the hurdle of the extraction itself. As you might imagine, getting to such a small amount is a major headache. Extracting cannabidiols is never exactly easy but CBG extraction takes things to another level. Experts agree that chromatography is the most effective way to get cannabidiols from the plants.
This process involves heat and superfluid liquid solvents. What you end up with is a high purity concentrate of CBG. Right now, that process can cost as much as $50,000 each time for CBG extraction. As you can imagine, those high prices are another reason why research on the substance is still at a relatively early stage. However, there are reasons to be cheerful. Because demand for CBG is on the rise, the process is being finessed and we should start to see prices drop. What’s more, farmers are looking at genetic manipulation and crossbreeding to boost the amount of CBG that they can extract from their plants. This is just one of the reasons why CBG is set to overtake CBD in the marketplace.
CBG Reacts With Your Body Differently
Because CBG has a different molecular structure to CBD, it interacts with the cannabinoid receptors in your brain differently. We have two cannabinoid receptors in our body, which are referred to as CB1 and CB2. CB1 receptors are located in our brain and nervous system. CB2 receptors are located elsewhere, including in our immune system.
As we mentioned, CBD is similar to CBG in that it is non-intoxicating and non-psychoactive (neither will get you high, in other words), but CBD only reacts with CB1 and CB2 receptors in a fairly indirect way. CBG actually binds to these receptors. As a result, the direct impact it has is significantly stronger.
CBG Could Have Real Health Benefits
CBD oil has long been mooted as having health benefits including pain and nausea relief. Given that CBG is the building block of CBD, it makes sense that its positive effects could be much greater. It is still very early days for studies being conducted into the application of CBG, but the research is extremely promising. It has anti-inflammatory properties, making it a potential asset in treatment for skin conditions as well as inflammatory bowel disease.
It could help to reduce intraocular eye pressure for people suffering from glaucoma. It has been shown to stimulate appetite, which would make it a real asset for people undergoing treatment for diseases like cancer and HIV. Scientists are looking into how it could help with everything from anxiety to bacterial infection, and there is so much that we have yet to learn.
This is a guest post. Opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Lifestyle For Men Magazine.
