Research regarding the efficacy of terpenes and the role they play in the human organism as well as their synergetic effects with phytocannabinoids is still in its infancy. However, preliminary results indicate that cannabis terpenes do indeed play a significantly greater therapeutic role as initially presumed.² The interaction of terpenes and cannabinoids, i.e. all active contents of the cannabis plant (“entourage effect”), has not yet been sufficiently let alone dose-dependently researched. What is certain however is that cannabinoid isolates work differently than the full spectrum of the entire bud / plant. This can also explain the different effects various cannabis genetics have: Cannabis varieties and extracts that demonstrate a similar concentration of CBD and THC can nevertheless show different effects due to their variant cannabinoid and terpene profiles – something that could be exploited for differential therapy.

The medically-relevant contribution that terpenes make to the entourage effect lies in a grey area, where almost none of the anecdotal claims have been confirmed in dose-dependent clinical studies. However, scientific hypotheses on the possible effect mechanisms for the anxiety-reducing and sedative effects of some terpenes do exist; most of these involve the GABAa receptor.^3,4-17