THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SATIVA AND INDICA: UNDERSTANDING CANNABIS STRAINS
For the past several decades, over thousands of cannabis subspecies have been bred world over to support medicinal usage of its strains. Browsing a well-stocked dispensary shelf around the US, it is not unusual to encounter pharmaceutical drug or substance for treatment that contains cannabis.
Given its different types of efficacy, lots of patients are aware with the varieties of cannabis seeds and what’s appropriate for particular diseases and ailments. However, there’s a lot of confusion about the difference between the different components of the cannabis plants. Cannabis strains, or cultivars has its own shape, color, aroma profile, and display of effects – which could get you a list that splits your options.
Cannabis, is a tall Asian flowering herb that’s divided into three kinds – Indica, sativa, and ruderalis. Ruderalis plants are small and yield relatively little medicine, it’s generally not appealing to patients as it provides lack of potency that’s why it’s more often avoided by breeders and cultivators; the focus of the medical cannabis community is on Indica and Sativa strains.
The general perception is that sativa strains give mainly a cerebral head high, while indica strains offers “body high”. Growers categorized the plants based on their growth traits and resulting chemical profiles, which helps retailers market cannabis by categorizing effects for consumers.
What we may not be aware of is how often we limit the scope of our cannabis consumption by forcing each flower into one of two ambiguous categories, so let’s delve deeper into ‘what differs indica and sativa strains” controversy, and how they are valuable in our current cannabis landscape.
INDICA VS. SATIVA
If you’re a novice, moderate, or veteran cannabis user, you’ll probably be asked or ask yourself every time you shop for a specific species of cannabis, whether you want the “body high” of indica, the “cerebral rush” of sativa, or the varied effects of a hybrid.
The two main types of cannabis, sativa and indica, are used for a number of medicinal and recreational purposes. These probably may have dictated every cannabis-related decision you’ve ever made and although research examining effects is limited, it appears that these plants have more in common and aims the same medicinal goal – that’s ensuring patients receive the best therapy possible.
The real difference between today’s indica and sativa plants is in their cultivation cycle. Observable traits like INDICA’S short growth with thick stems and broad, deep-green leaves, short flowering cycles, sufficiently growth in cold or short-season climates differs SATIVA’S longer flowering cycles, taller growth with light-green and narrow leaves, and fare better in warm climates with long seasons.
Indica and Sativa plants has its differing physiological effects, Sativas are known for their “head high,” an invigorating, energizing effect that can help reduce anxiety or stress and increase creativity and focus while Indicas are typically associated with full-body effects, such as increasing deep relaxation and reducing insomnia.
There’s virtually no such thing as a “pure” indica, or sativa anymore, since crossbreeding in cannabis cultivation has been the name of the game for the 50 years. Every flower has most likely been a hybrid of some sort and each strain produces an effect as individual as its end user – so make sure what suits best of your usage.
