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What are Cannabis Flavonoids?
Learn what cannabis flavonoids are, how they work, and what role they play in your overall health.
By now, you’ve probably heard all of the terms in cannabis language. You’ve heard about cannabinoids, like THC and CBD, that work with the ECS (endocannabinoid system). Then there’s the terpenes that create the smells of cannabis and other plants, like linalool, that also have their own medicinal benefits. All of those terms get discussed pretty regularly, but have you heard about flavonoids?
What is a Cannabis Flavonoid?
A phytonutrient, present in most fruits and vegetables, flavonoids serve an important purpose in the life cycle of plants.
Flavonoids influence and regulate the color of fruits and vegetables. Now we know they affect the color of cannabis. Flavonoids in cannabis and other plants play a complicated role in attracting pollinators to flowers, and natural defense mechanisms like warding off pests or diseases.
Flavonoid Research
Researchers are becoming more aware of the importance of flavonoids. Some scientists are researching the therapeutic effects of flavonoids. This includes how the flavonoid content in cannabis may contribute to the medicinal benefits. Current research on flavonoids found in other plants indicates that
higher intakes “were significantly associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular events”.
This is great news, considering one person dies every 36 seconds in the United States due to cardiovascular disease. In fact, it’s one of the leading causes of death in the country.
In addition to the cardiovascular benefits of flavonoids, they also found
people who consume more flavonoids through fruits and vegetables have a 14% reduced risk of stroke.
Another leading killer in America, strokes accounts for more than 795,000 deaths per year. Those are a lot of people who could potentially benefit from more flavonoids. Whether they come from cannabis or fruits and veggies, they could potentially save many lives.
What are Cannflavins?
The flavonoids in cannabis are called cannflavins. They make up an extremely small percentage of the hundreds of different compounds found in cannabis. Because the flavonoid content in cannabis is such a small amount, it’s difficult to judge how much medicinal benefit it is adding to each plant. There isn’t currently a lot of concrete evidence concluding cannflavins are influencing the effects of cannabis as medicine. However, many experts suggest flavonoids are involved in the entourage effect. This is where all the different cannabinoids, terpenes, flavonoids, and other phytonutrients work together in unison to enhance or amplify the medicinal benefits of cannabis.
Even though there is not a lot of scientific research to back up claims that the flavonoids in cannabis are adding more than color to your medicine, it makes sense that if they provide medicinal value to fruits and vegetables, cannabis should be no different.