The “Entourage Effect”
If you just looked at the term “Entourage Effect” you might think it just means one thing. Well it sort of does and it sort of doesn’t. The term is actually means “things working together”, and it is used with different substances in different contexts. Here are a couple of examples.
The “Entourage Effect” of THC and CBD. Proponents of Full Spectrum CBD hold to the theory that even though the legal THC component is so small that it does not have any psychoactive effect, the THC working together with the CBD produces a better or more pronounced effect than CBD used by itself. Interesting theory, but does it hold up?? There is some respectable support for the proposition, but it is not a scientific certainty.
Another example of the “Entourage Effect” is the supposed benefit of the mixture of CBD with terpenes and/or flavonoids and fatty acids. One theory supposes that the more natural components of the hemp plant used, so much the better. Some theories advance the idea that the “Entourage Effect” of just CBD and whatever terpenes are in a particular strain of hemp is the best. Is any of this definitive?
The only truly supportable answer to the question is based in hard science, and there simply is not very much of that. CBD works on the endocannabinoid receptors, as does THC which is also a cannabinoid. The idea that these may complement each other is thus somewhat supportable. Other substances in the potential mixes may operate in some other fashion, so it is not as clear how one may help another. It is not at all impossible that some combinations offer better results than others, but the claims that these results are known is not really supportable.
At Utopia CBD we allow for the proposition that Full Spectrum may have advantages that Broad Spectrum does not have, so we hold open the possibility that the Entourage Effect may indeed be helpful here. Our CBD is pure cannabinoids, whether Full Spectrum or Broad Spectrum, so our customers can validate their experience with the results published scientifically by the National Institute of Health and the World Health Organization, among others.