Why You Need to Decarb Your Marijuana First

Have you ever tried eating your buds raw and then…nothing? Cannabinoids, within the flower, are in an acid form in their natural state. When the Cannabinoids, such as THCA, still have the “A”, it is a non-phsycoactive molecule. Don’t fret, if you did eat Cannabis raw, you just ate the best superfood available.

A generic laboratory test of raw Cannabis shows that there is 19.8% THCA and only 0.7% of THC. As you apply heat to a THCA molecule or any Cannabinoid, it will begin a process called decarboxylation. The acid attached to each Cannabinoid is called a Carboxyl Acid. The acid is Carbon Dioxide with a Hydrogen proton attached and its chemical structure is COOH. As heat is a applied, the THCA molecule will loose this Carboxyl Acid and it becomes THC, the psychoactive molecule that gives Cannabis its famous properties. The acid prevents it from binding to cannabinoid receptors in the body’s brain and nervous system. CBDA, the acid form of CBD, will too lose its “A”, and so forth with the other Cannabinoids. The acid prevents the molecules from interacting with the natural receptors in your body.

When a person smokes Marijuana, they are decarbing it by applying heat from the flame of the lighter or by the cherry of a joint. It is also decrarbed while being vaped or dabbed; the Carboxyl Acids are heated away. Natural decarboxylation occurs too by exposure to heat and sunlight. With all of these methods, a good amount of Cannabinoids, terpenes and flavonoids will evaporate into thin air before they reach the smoker’s lungs.

Knowing How to Decarboxylate Your Cannabis is Key to Maximizing Your Medicine

Beyond smoking Cannabis, the most traditional way people decarb Marijuana is by cooking it. Traditionally, decarboxylating Cannabinoids equates to loss. If your Cannabis is tested at 18% THCA and cooked in an oven on a cookie sheet pan, the material might end up at 12% THC or less (hypothetical). This is a 33% loss of active THC. Besides the Cannabinoids that evaporate, other molecules, compounds and terpenes degrade or are destroyed. The maximization of these molecules and compounds in your medicine plays part to the Entourage Effect. The more you can retain will make your medicine more potent and effective.

In addition to the loss of Cannabinoids and such, the ability to completely decarboxylate the Marijuana 100% is near impossible. If you were able to achieve complete decarb, then Cannabinoids, terpenes and other molecules have been lost.

A study conducted a few years ago finds inaccuracy in dosing of edible Medical Marijuana products in three metropolitan areas, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle.

SATIVAisticated’s Recommended Way to Decarb Your Marijuana