Sativa vs Indica, what is the difference?

Ok, I feel really dumb that I should know the answer to this, but after 30+ years of using cannabis, I still can't figure it out from a medicinal point of view. So many other factors seem to have a much larger impact on the final product than just being sativa vs indica.

I understand Sativa = tall with long skinny leaves and Indica = short with fat broad leaves.

What I want to know is about the medical side of things. Since it seems anyone can make any plant 'energetic' or 'couchlock' simply based on harvest time/trichrome colors, what are other things to look for that I am missing (obviously a lot).

As an example, one thing I suffer from is migraines. I found that a certain type of Strawberry Cough seems to get rid of migraines within seconds of use, while other strawberry cough's will make the migraine worse. There are so many variables on top of phenos that it is simply hard to pin anything down with any certainty. Was it the strain/specific pheno that actually got rid of the migraine, or was it the growing environment that gave the plant the properties needed to give the positive health effect?

This should be good. From what I've gathered so far, it's strain and genetics and it seems even the same strain from different breeders can give different results. For example, I got a bunch of White Widow seeds as I read it was good for pain and anxiety. I later found out I got lucky and got them from the right breeder for the exact effect I wanted. I had no idea until I ran into a thread of someone who grows pretty much only White Widow and for the same reasons. Then again, I imagine medical benefits would also vary from user to user to some extent.

Interesting stuff for sure.

Creature1969 said:

This should be good. From what I've gathered so far, it's strain and genetics and it seems even the same strain from different breeders can give different results. For example, I got a bunch of White Widow seeds as I read it was good for pain and anxiety. I later found out I got lucky and got them from the right breeder for the exact effect I wanted. I had no idea until I ran into a thread of someone who grows pretty much only White Widow and for the same reasons. Then again, I imagine medical benefits would also vary from user to user to some extent.

Interesting stuff for sure.

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Ain't that the truth lol.

First your not really going to find any true Sativa or Indica in America well maybe someone has one they are hiding and not sharing. Most if not all of whats available now are hybrids. BUt they contain different amounts of the same chemicals setting off different receptors and causing different effects. Sativa is more Brain great for depression anxiety all that wile Indica s more for body like a muscle relaxer. And strangely both can make you couch lock seems to be cause by how much you let the tricomes mature or go brown. when they are white they are THC A i think it does nothing then turn into another form when cloudy (high Feeling) and another when brown(Couch Lock euphoric feeling). For science stuff read here https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3736954/

But like I said most of what is available is a hybred so you get a little from one side and a little from the other

TLDR: go here https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3736954/

MissyGoddess said:

Ok, I feel really dumb that I should know the answer to this, but after 30+ years of using cannabis, I still can't figure it out from a medicinal point of view. So many other factors seem to have a much larger impact on the final product than just being sativa vs indica.

I understand Sativa = tall with long skinny leaves and Indica = short with fat broad leaves.

What I want to know is about the medical side of things. Since it seems anyone can make any plant 'energetic' or 'couchlock' simply based on harvest time/trichrome colors, what are other things to look for that I am missing (obviously a lot).

As an example, one thing I suffer from is migraines. I found that a certain type of Strawberry Cough seems to get rid of migraines within seconds of use, while other strawberry cough's will make the migraine worse. There are so many variables on top of phenos that it is simply hard to pin anything down with any certainty. Was it the strain/specific pheno that actually got rid of the migraine, or was it the growing environment that gave the plant the properties needed to give the positive health effect?

Click to expand...

Have you ever tried a pure CBD strain? wont get you high but may help with the headache https://www.leafly.com/news/science-tech/new-study-confirms-that-cannabis-can-help-migraine-sufferers

I completely understand 99.9% of what is out there are hybrids. Still, the question remains, are there certain benefits that are much more predominant in one type vs the other AND has been proven scientifically, not anecdotally.

Just today I saw someone post on here that 'they need a sativa plant for medical needs' which is what led me to asking this question. I have never read anything that would indicate why someone would NEED a sativa over an indica or vice versa.

I don't think we (humans) have that level of knowledge to say any 'strain' can provide any more or less medical benefit over any other. With specific genotypes, sure, it could be possible, but not down to the strain level IMO but I would love to be proven wrong. I really want to see hard scientific data on medicinal qualities of genos, crossing my fingers we are within years of that being a reality.

Morth said:

Have you ever tried a pure CBD strain? wont get you high but may help with the headache https://www.leafly.com/news/science-tech/new-study-confirms-that-cannabis-can-help-migraine-sufferers

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I have been trying and trying. My dispensary said they got me a clone of Charlottes Web (hard to believe) but then said their 'forgot it was in their backseat' while making deliveries all day and killed the clone. I have been calling around non stop for the past 2 months looking for a high CBD strain. Until then, I am making CBD gel caps out of the 70g of reclaim I have stored up.

@MissyGoddess clicky clicky the link in my first post for the scientific answer from (US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health) Charlotte web can be as high as 30% CBD but ya i like my 30% to be THC lol

@MissyGoddess or hell look below think i got the part from the science stuff you wanted now my head hurts...

The cannabis plant has two main subspecies, Cannabis indica and Cannabis sativa, and they can be differentiated by their different physical characteristics. Indica-dominant strains are short plants with broad, dark green leaves and have higher cannabidiol content than the sativa plants in which THC content is higher. Sativa-dominant strains are usually taller and have thin leaves with a pale green colour. Due to its higher THC content, C. sativa is the preferred choice by users. It is a complex plant with about 426 chemical entities, of which more than 60 are cannabinoid compounds [Dewey, 1986]. The four major compounds are d-9-THC, CBD, d-8-THC and cannabinol, which have been most researched [Pertwee, 1997, 2008; Pamplona and Takahashi, 2012].

In the plant, cannabinoids are synthesized and accumulated as cannabinoid acids, but when the herbal product is dried, stored and heated, the acids decarboxylize gradually into their proper forms, such as CBD or d-9-THC [De Meijer et al. 2003]. Originally it was thought that CBD was the metabolic parent to d-9-THC, but it was later found that its biosynthesis occurs according to a genetically determined ratio [Russo and Guy, 2006]. Even though the chemical structures of all four compounds are similar, their pharmacological effects can be very different. The most researched compounds of the plant are d-9-THC and CBD and therefore we will mainly focus on these two compounds and their differences.

Thank you!!! You're awesome! Short answer: Sativa = Higher THC, Indica = Higher CBD, very generalized statement but a very good place to start.

I am reading it now, will take me a month to get through it. LOL.

First part of the intro:
"Cannabis is a complex plant with over 400 chemical entities of which more than 60 of them are cannabinoid compounds, some of them with opposing effects."

Which shows just how many variables are at play, so to say "X strain' provides Y/Z medical benefits seems like a bold faced lie to me (looking at seed vendors and dispensaries that list medicinal benefits of strains). If they said 'this strain COULD provide y/z benefit' or 'some people have noticed y/z effects from this strain' but to have 10,000 white widow seeds and say every seed will provide the same medicinal value is just wrong and it peeves me when places make medical claims simply based on strain name. I don't think that is possible now or ever will be until we can clone seeds.

MissyGoddess said:

Which shows just how many variables are at play, so to say "X strain' provides Y/Z medical benefits seems like a bold faced lie to me (looking at seed vendors and dispensaries that list medicinal benefits of strains).

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You're quite perceptive Missy. While cannabinoids are promising and lots of research is ongoing, virtually all of the medical claims made by people who use and sell cannabis are complete bullshit. Not a shred of good evidence for claims like "X strain provides Y/Z medical benefits."

You'll find that this type of BS is quite common in cannabis culture. Many people are scientifically illiterate. More than enough mythology and broscience to go around. In addition to medical claims that are simply fantasy, there many others. For example, the claim that feminized seeds will express intersex traits, that organic growing gives better taste and a smooth burn, that flushing gives better taste and clean burn, and one of my favorites that is on topic: that indicas are stony and sativas uplifting. Another totally unsubstantiated rumor perpetuated by ignorant hippies. That one seems pretty easy to test, too, but I've never heard of anyone even trying.

@Observe & Report. I agree. I'm not a scientist or anyone that knows everything but I have been coming across alot of stuff that is also saying the indica and sativa classification is really really really outdated and no one has really challenged or questioned these facts due to cannabis being illegal. I've had sativa's and indica's that were essentially from the same mother but got me twisted in two different ways. There are so many inputs and so many ways that people grow that who really knows what is fact or fiction.

MasterMiller said:

@Observe & ReportI have been coming across alot of stuff that is also saying the indica and sativa classification is really really really outdated and no one has really challenged or questioned these facts due to cannabis being illegal.

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Yep, molecular studies are ongoing. McPartland is leading the charge here:

http://www.beyondthc.com/mcpartlands-corrected-vernacular-nomenclature/

There are so many inputs and so many ways that people grow that who really knows what is fact or fiction.

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There is a proven process to separate fact from fiction: SCIENCE!

We can't all be scientists but we can be skeptical when people make claims and ask them to show us the evidence. Most people are just repeating something they heard somewhere without even thinking much about it.

@Observe & Report think you need to do a little more research. Some points are right on some not so much it's Friday and i'm out of... But ya lots of people selling snake oil doesn't mean there isn't any legitimate research out there proving the medical benefits. As for your Feminized seed comment it depends on how the mother turned intersex (fancy word for hermi) to create those feminized seeds. Flushing no clue will say it I cant see any logic in it but have no way to prove or disprove it. Flushing does seem like a stupid idea though...

Of course there is legit research going on, it's just that virtually all of the claims made by cannabis users and vendors are complete BS. Especially the "X strain provides Y/Z medical benefits" claims.

Are there any feminized seeds available for sale that are made with Rodelization? I would bet that all feminized seeds for sale are made with silver and have been for some time. That's what people/breeders talk about when they shit on feminized seeds. Unintentional bag seed, of course, is dodgy and these days you have to be desperate or have a lot of free space to pop that crap.

Observe & Report said:

Yep, molecular studies are ongoing. McPartland is leading the charge here:

http://www.beyondthc.com/mcpartlands-corrected-vernacular-nomenclature/


There is a proven process to separate fact from fiction: SCIENCE!

We can't all be scientists but we can be skeptical when people make claims and ask them to show us the evidence. Most people are just repeating something they heard somewhere without even thinking much about it.

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That is really awesome. I had watched a video somewhere( can't remember where, hehehe) alongside the same thing the article was talking about. Really awesome stuff.

I made my own head hurt thinking about this thread now. Fell down a deep rabbit hole in my thoughts and I depressed myself because I can't see an outcome that doesn't look like a more evil version of the current pfizer / monsanto mashup in the form of a cannabis corporation. The answers I am seeking requires a lot of $, and the people willing the put that type of $ into the research are most certainly going to want profits in return.

I'm going to go play in my tents for a few with a couple dabs to calm down and listen to the Grow Roundtable on youtube in a few minutes.

@Observe & Report cant disagree with any of that. If my misunderstand my apologies long week and brain is going on strike atm.

Think (no backup) most people are afraid of feminized seeds because of people taking a female with a genetic disposition to go hermi (under optimal conditions) and selling the seeds it produced as feminized. Well guess what all those seeds have a genetic disposition to go hermi under optimal conditions imagine that.

CBD stains have many medically proven benefits like charlotte's web but for the most part you don't know if your getting the strain they say it is to begin with. Can't wait until CA starts requiring testing that will eliminate allot of the stupid growers selling us poison. They can tell you all the cannabinoids that are in a bud they just don't, hell in CA your lucky if they know the THC % and people always claiming others work and giving a strain a random name and you have no clue what you have...

And it's time to veg and watch the growtube round table even if i have 0 interest in growing outside. May learn something https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzzCZoXYp5JH7QKhWadOQcA or possibly just hippy dribble with some science mixed in lol (joking love those guys but half say to flush)

MissyGoddess said:

I made my own head hurt thinking about this thread now. Fell down a deep rabbit hole in my thoughts and I depressed myself because I can't see an outcome that doesn't look like a more evil version of the current pfizer / monsanto mashup in the form of a cannabis corporation. The answers I am seeking requires a lot of $, and the people willing the put that type of $ into the research are most certainly going to want profits in return.

I'm going to go play in my tents for a few with a couple dabs to calm down and listen to the Grow Roundtable on youtube in a few minutes.

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People are actually starting to genetically map their strains so when big farm tries to patent them and keep everyone else from growing that strain they can prove they created it. Sad part is big pharm can just lock you up in a court battle until you go bankrupt and cant do anything...

The beer and wine markets are dominated by a handful of megacorps but you can get great beer almost everywhere and even wine lists in restaurants far from any wine producing regions have good selections from small producers these days. Once upon a time there was lots of terrible wine around and spoiled wine from France and Italy but now even cheap bottles can be good. Cannabis businesses have been building for 20 years due to medical. Quality everything has been increasing for the last 20-30 years: coffee, bagels/bread, produce, and even water. I am very optimistic that there will be a market for high quality cannabis. The only problem will be that as soon as you find a good brand they will jack up their prices and/or get bought out by a megacorp.