Fire up a joint, rip a few bong hits, or take a toke from a pipe or vaporizer. There is one consequence of these actions that cannabis users can count on.
The munchies.
What it is that sends our taste buds into overdrive?
A new study from the journal Nature Neuroscience claims that it is a heightened sense of smell that makes a person crave food after using cannabis.
Science has known for decades that the human body has an endocannabinoid system. Endocannabinoids are compounds that have the same effect in the body as the cannabinoids in cannabis, like THC and CBD, but the body produces them naturally.
When a person uses cannabis, the cannabinoids from the plant (called phytocannabinoids) bind with receptors all over the body to produce different effects. But why is hunger one of those effects?
Perhaps it’s because hunger enhances a person’s sensory perception. In ancient times, this sharpened us up so we could better hunt and gather food. It’s called survival.
According to the study conducted by European scientists led by Giovanni Marsicano of the University of Bordeaux, when cannabinoids are received by cannabinoid type-1 (CB1) receptors in the main olfactory bulb (MOB) of the brain, they signal that the body is starving.
Mice were used as test subjects. Since all mammals share cannabinoid similarities, the brains of mice and humans function quite alike.
This article was originally published by The Hemp Connoisseur Magazine as Skyler Cannabaceae.
