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What are minor cannabinoids?
Beyond THC and CBD, a cannabis lab report lists other cannabinoids: THCA, the raw acid form of THC, which is often the largest number on a flower report, and the minor cannabinoids, such as CBG, CBN, CBC, THCV and CBDV, which appear in much smaller amounts.
THCA: why the raw number is bigger
THCA (tetrahydrocannabinolic acid) is the form THC takes in the living plant, and it is generally considered non-intoxicating as it is. Heat strips a small piece of the molecule away, a step called decarboxylation, and turns it into THC; the same change happens slowly with time and light. That is why a flower report lists THCA beside a much smaller THC figure.
Total THC is a ceiling
Because THCA can convert, labs also report total THC: the THC already present plus the THC the THCA could become, calculated as THC plus 0.877 times THCA. The 0.877 accounts for the weight the molecule loses as it converts. In practice some is lost along the way, so total THC is the most a product could yield, not a measure of what you take in.
The minor cannabinoids
- CBG (cannabigerol): Made from CBGA, the precursor the plant turns into THCA, CBDA and CBCA. Generally considered non-intoxicating.
- CBC (cannabichromene): Its acid form, CBCA, is made from CBGA by its own enzyme, as THCA and CBDA are. Generally considered non-intoxicating.
- CBN (cannabinol): Forms as THC breaks down with age, heat, light and air. Generally considered far less intoxicating than THC.
- THCV (tetrahydrocannabivarin): A relative of THC with a shorter side chain, from a parallel branch. In animal studies its action changed with the dose; in people it is not known.
- CBDV (cannabidivarin): A relative of CBD with a shorter side chain, from the same parallel branch as THCV. Generally considered non-intoxicating.
One caution covers the whole list: a product that carries any of these may also carry THC, which is intoxicating. The full cannabinoid panel on its certificate of analysis says what is in it, whatever the front of the package names.
What is known, and what is not
The chemistry above is solid ground: where each compound comes from and how heat changes it. Research on what most minor cannabinoids do in people is early, small and often preclinical, while the marketing around them is not. Read the cannabinoid content, and treat any bold claim about a minor cannabinoid with skepticism.
Two of them have pages of their own, CBG and THCV; for reading the panel itself, see how to read a lab label.
Educational content, not medical advice. Effects vary by person, product, and dose. For use only by qualified patients. Keep out of reach of children and pets.