Shyne Botanicals spares no effort when it comes to keeping up to date with the newest and trending Cannabis products, however CBG is not anything new, it was first isolated in 1964 but since then it has hardly been studied. Research into CBG is still at a preclinical stage, but the studies that are available suggest that it holds considerable therapeutic promise.
CBG’s analgesic properties may surpass those of THC without the intoxicating hit. There’s also evidence to suggest CBG may offer anticancer, antidepressant, and antibacterial qualities.
CBG is non-psychoactive, meaning it doesn’t produce a high and is somewhat unique among cannabinoids, making users feel energized and focused rather than the relaxed feeling THC or CBD generally produce. This makes CBG popular among people searching for a cannabinoid to boost productivity.
CBG is different from CBD in several critical ways, such as its molecular structure. CBD and CBG have different three-dimensional shapes, and therefore bind with the body’s cannabinoid receptors in different ways and act on the body distinctively. The molecular structure of a cannabinoid also helps determine the bioavailability, and its degree of solubility in water.
CBD and CBG also activate receptors differently. At the 5-HT1A serotonin receptor. CBD appears to exert its anti-nausea effects through its affinity for the 5-HT1A receptor, acting as an agonist (activator). CBG, on the other hand, behaves as an antagonist (blocker) at the 5-HT1A receptor. The findings showed that a pre-treatment with CBG blocked CBD’s anti-emetic effects, suggesting that the two cannabinoids bound to the same place, but had opposing actions at this receptor.
Another critical way in which CBG differs from CBD is in appetite stimulation.
Research in rats showed that doses of CBG encouraged the animals to eat more than double their normal food intake. In another study, cannabigerol didn’t induce any changes to feeding behavior, but cannabidiol significantly reduced total food intake
Although there are no clinical trials that have explored the effects of CBG on humans, a number of pre-clinical studies offer insights into some of the potential therapeutic effects of CBG. While CBG won’t offer you an intoxicating, psychoactive experience, it may provide other unique therapeutic benefits.
One of the many potential benefits of CBG is supporting focus, consumers often report a sense of alertness or focus related to CBG. One of the possible explanations for this effect is that CBG has shown great potential as a neuroprotectant. CBG also helps to support healthy inflammatory function and has even been shown to possibly support neurogenesis, the growth of new brain cells possibly leading to greater capacity for focus and attention.
CBG also may help to support a healthy appetite. Marijuana, the cannabis plant potent in the psychoactive compound THC, is generally affiliated with the munchies. CBG seems to share this appetite stimulating trait with THC. Inducing appetite can help certain people get an adequate amount of nutrients into their bodies. Binge eating junk food is typically what comes to mind with the marijuana munchies. However, there are cases in which an increase in appetite is beneficial, such as for those experiencing a lack of appetite for various reasons. In a study conducted with rats, CBG was found to increase the appetite in well-satiated rats without producing any dangerous side-effects. Link
One of the more popular reasons people seek out hemp-based products is to manage their emotional well-being and help alleviate discomfort naturally. It turns out that CBG may be more beneficial to help support a normal stress response over its famous counterpart, CBD. Both CBD and CBG help to inhibit the breakdown of the neurotransmitter, GABA. Increased concentrations of GABA may have potent relaxation effects that help to regulate the stress response. However, there’s another reason in which CBG helps to support stress management. CBG happens to be a potent 5-HT1A serotonin receptor antagonist. Studies suggest that CBG inhibits serotonin’s uptake, which means a higher concentration of this neurotransmitter may stay active in the brain. Link
The longer that a cannabis plant matures, the more chance there is that the CBGA and CBG present in the strain will be converted into other cannabinoids. This leaves cultivators with a choice: either grow cannabis with the express purpose of producing CBG, meaning that you can harvest the crop early before this conversion completes; or allow the crop to fully mature, so that some of the crop can be sold for other purposes but the rest will have a lower CBG content for extraction.
“It takes thousands of pounds of biomass to create small amounts of CBG isolate,” James Rowland, CEO of the Colorado CBG brand Steve’s Goods, told Forbes.
“That’s because most hemp only contains minute percentages of CBG, whereas there are now hemp strains that contain 20 percent CBD in the crop. If the CBG content of the same crop is only 1 percent, that means you need to extract 20 times the amount of biomass to get the same amount of CBG out.”