Myrcene Terpenes - What Is It and What Are Its Effects?

Myrcene Terpenes -

What Is It and What Are Its Effects?

Myrcene is the most abundant terpene in modern commercial cannabis. When we look at thousands of samples of cannabis flower tested by Leafly lab partners, we see this clearly. On average, myrcene represents over 20% of the terpene profile in modern commercial strains, although individual samples vary widely in their terpene content.

What Are the Effects of Myrcene?

Terpenes affect individuals differently, and it’s important to keep that in mind when you’re seeking out terpene-rich cannabis products. Research has only just started to dig into the potentially powerful effects that terpenes may have in the human body. Early research suggests that myrcene may have a sedative effect, aid in the growth of protective mucous lining in the GI tract, and another study showed it helped to inhibit tumor growth.

It is possible that if the sedative effects of myrcene are accurate as some studies suggest, that it could be useful for people who experience anxiety. However, similar to all cannabisrelated terpenes, more research is needed to fully understand beta myrcene effects.

Myrcene is also the most likely cannabis terpene to be dominant in flower. A strain’s “dominant” terpene is simply the terpene present at the highest level. In modern commercial cannabis, only a limited number of terpenes show up as dominant even though there are many more cannabis terpenes in a strain’s overall profile.

If you picked a random flower product off of a shelf in a legal state, you could expect it to be myrcene-dominant about 40% of the time. This reflects the relative lack of chemical diversity in modern commercial cannabis. There’s a lot of room for breeders to experiment with increasing the chemical diversity of strains, potentially even creating novel strains with terpene profiles that are unlike anything commercially available today.

Percentage Of Strains Dominant In Each Terpene

Myrcene is a terpene found typically indica-dominant strains but it’s in sativa-dominant strains too at a lesser amount.

Does Myrcene Make You Sleepy?

Herbal medicines containing myrcene have a long history of being used as a sleep aid in folk medicine. In Mexico, myrcene-rich lemongrass infused tea has been used in as a sedative and muscle relaxant. It is common for Germans, who are the second largest hops growers in the world (the US is first), to use myrcene-rich hops preparations as a sleep aid. However, it’s not clear that any controlled studies have pinpointed myrcene as having a causal role in driving sleep in humans; we are not aware of any well-controlled human clinical trials that clearly demonstrate a sedative effect of myrcene.

Myrcene Can Help Reduce Pain and Inflammation

Lemongrass tea containing high levels of myrcene has played a role in Brazilian folk medicine for its claimed anti-anxiety and pain-relieving properties. The first published claim for myrcene reducing pain was generated in 1990 by scientists in Brazil. They concluded that myrcene reduced pain by increasing the brain and spinal cord’s own opioid chemicals, but this has been debated. Much more work is needed to prove whether or not myrcene has bona fide pain-relieving properties in humans.

Other Potential Benefits of

Myrcene can block the cancer-causing effects of aflatoxins that are produced by fungi but find their way to our food. These anti-mutagen properties stem from myrcene’s inhibition of the liver enzyme, CYP2B1, which induces aflatoxin’s ability to damage our DNA. Myrcene also protects against DNA damage from toxins such as t-butylhydroperoxide. These anti-mutagen effects are consistent with those of other terpenes, along with their antioxidant and antimicrobial benefits.

Final Thoughts

Spending time in nature makes one feel less anxious and stabilizes their mood.

Connecting to nature is associated with mindfulness and good health. It promotes relaxation. So, why spending time in nature has this effect? This is because of terpenes. Before you make a decision to buy myrcene terpenes, also check some other information on different types of terpenes and their health benefits.