Marijuana, which is still highly policed in many areas of the country, is now legal in 23 different states for medical use, while five states, including the District of Columbia, have legalized it for recreational use. The legalization has been found to do wonders for the states’ economies, with Oregon retailers selling more than $11 million worth of marijuana during their first week of legal recreation sales, and Colorado netting $60,100,000 in state tax revenue from the sales last year.
For people living in the states where marijuana has been recreationally legalized, there are a lot of choices for products, from topical balms and tinctures to prepackaged joints and edibles. In addition, there are many different marijuana dispensaries. Yet for newbies, discussion of the strains of marijuana can be confusing. You may have heard terms like “indica” and “sativa” thrown around, but what, exactly, do they mean? Check out this quick explanation of the two basic categories of strains, so that you can make an educated purchase when you go to a marijuana dispensary.
Indica
Indica strains are known for their sedating, relaxing, full-body effects, and are commonly used to treat anxiety, insomnia, pain, and muscle spasms.
Sativa
In contrast to indicas, sativas are known for their more energizing and uplifting effects, and are known to inspire creativity and cerebrally focused effects. Marijuana of this strain can be used for depression, ADD, fatigue, and mood disorders.
Because of these differences, many users tend to reserve sativas for daytime use, and indicas for nighttime use, although this varies from user to user. They both have medical utilities, and there are many “hybrids” which combine or balance the effects of both strains.
At your nearby marijuana dispensaries, there will be highly trained “bud tenders” that have a wide knowledge not only of the strains and their variations (for example, pineapple diesel, green queen, and blue dream marijuana), but of the products and their specific effects, and can help you get started to find the strain that is right and perfect for you right now.
