{"id":30557,"date":"2021-07-21T04:10:51","date_gmt":"2021-07-21T04:10:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailycbd.cc\/en\/?p=30557"},"modified":"2022-06-09T18:52:02","modified_gmt":"2022-06-09T18:52:02","slug":"thc-o","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailycbd.com\/en\/thc-o\/","title":{"rendered":"THC-O: The Psychedelic Cannabinoid"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

TL,DR: WTF is THC-O?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
  1. THC-O is a prodrug of delta 9 THC<\/li>
  2. THC-O is 3 times more potent than delta 9 THC<\/li>
  3. THC-O is 5 times more potent than delta 8 THC<\/li>
  4. THC-O is a synthetic cannabinoid (it does not occur in nature)<\/li>
  5. THC-O has psychedelic effects \u2014 altering our perception of time & sensory information<\/li>
  6. There\u2019s no evidence to suggest THC-O is particularly dangerous, but none to prove it\u2019s safe either<\/li>
  7. THC-O is not affected by tolerance formation to delta 8 or delta 9 THC<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    What is THC-O?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    THC-O (sometimes spelled THCo or ATHC) is short for THC-O-Acetate \u2014 it\u2019s a powerfully psychoactive synthetic analog of THC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    THC-O produces a similar high<\/em> to other forms of THC \u2014 only much more psychedelic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Low doses feel virtually identical to delta 9 THC, moderate doses are nearly psychedelic in terms of the more intense visuals and altered headspace it creates. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    High doses of THC-O can be fairly incapacitating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    THC-O has an entirely different headspace compared to other cannabinoids<\/a>. It\u2019s most comparable to low-doses of mescaline but with milder visuals and a much heavier, more physically sedating effect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    What Makes THC-O So Much Stronger Than Regular THC?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    While there\u2019s still a lot we don\u2019t know about this substance, it\u2019s clear the effects are much stronger than the THC you\u2019re used to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    THC-O is a prodrug, which means it doesn\u2019t become active until after<\/em> it\u2019s metabolized by the liver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Once it\u2019s metabolized, what\u2019s left is essentially just delta 9 THC. So why would this compound be any stronger?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    There\u2019s a lot of speculation around this, but the theory is that it comes down to bioavailability<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The acetylated version of THC is significantly more bioavailable than the non-acetylated version. Once THC-O is absorbed, the unique functional group (-O) is removed \u2014 allowing the THC to exert its effects as usual \u2014 only at a much higher dose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Another cannabinoid, called THCP<\/a>, is even stronger than THC-O \u2014 with more than 30 times the potency of delta 9 THC. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    How Long Does it Take For THC-O to Take Effect?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Because of the prodrug nature of THC-O \u2014 there\u2019s a noticeable delay in the onset of effects for this substance. While delta 9 THC usually takes about 15 to 30 minutes to kick in (oral), THC-O can take up to an hour before the effects are felt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When smoking or vaping, delta 9 or delta 8 THC usually kicks in within just a few minutes, but THC-O can take up to 20 minutes.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Once the effects start to appear, the come-on is exceptionally fast. The peak experience is usually reached within 20 minutes of feeling the first wave of effects. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    A common (and potentially dangerous) mistake people often make with this compound is getting impatient and taking a second dose too early. If you took THC-O and don\u2019t feel anything after an hour, it\u2019s important to wait at least one more hour before taking a second dose. The last thing you want is to have both doses kick in at the same time unexpectedly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Where Can I Buy THC-O?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    It’s hard to find THC-O at the moment. There are a few companies selling it, such as Binoid<\/a>, Delta Effex<\/a>, or Bearly Legal<\/a> \u2014 but avoid the vape carts and stick to the gummies or tinctures for this cannabinoid. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    There\u2019s some concern over the safety of vaping THC-O because of its characteristic acetate chemical group. Many users on Reddit have already started reporting delayed onset of coughs and lung congestion after vaping THC-O-acetate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Some experts compare the risk of THC-O-Acetate with vitamin E acetate \u2014 a compound found in cheap vape carts that have been linked with a severe lung condition called lipoid pneumonia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Is THC-O a Naturally-Occurring Cannabinoid?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    No, THC-O is not found in nature. It\u2019s one of the many synthetic cannabinoids<\/a> in existence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    THC-O is considered a classical cannabinoid, which means it shares the same base structure as cannabinoids found in nature. The difference is that the functional acetate group is not found in nature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    More specifically, THC-O shares the same ABC-tricyclic structure with a benzopyran moiety. This is the defining feature of all classical cannabinoids (including CBC, CBD, delta 8 THC, and delta 9 THC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Non-classical cannabinoids are compounds that have entirely different structures than naturally occurring cannabinoids. They’re still considered cannabinoids because they’re able to bind with the endocannabinoid receptors \u2014 or exert cannabinoid-like effects. These compounds deliver a significantly higher risk of side effects compared to classical cannabinoids. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Some examples include naphthoylindoles, cyclohexylphenols, and phenylacetylindoles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Is THC-O Legal?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    THC-O is not listed as a prohibited substance in most parts of the world \u2014 with the exception of New Zealand and the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In the United States<\/a>, THC-O is most likely a Schedule I substance by proxy under the Federal Analogue Act. This act was passed in 1986 and served to ban any analogs of existing Schedule I substances<\/a> by default. Substances need a manual exemption to be taken off this list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Because THC-O is an analog of delta 9 THC (which is a Schedule I drug), it’s very likely that THC-O is illegal under the FAA in the United States and most of Europe<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In Canada<\/a>, THC-O isn\u2019t explicitly listed as a prohibited substance, and there are no acts that prohibit chemical analogs \u2014 however, it\u2019s very hard to find this compound in Canada.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    What\u2019s The Dose of THC-O?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    There have never been any official studies on the optimal dose of THC-O \u2014 just lots of anecdotal reports of people testing the effects of THC-O at different doses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The general consensus is that THC-O is about three times as strong as delta 9 THC \u2014 so the dose would be about a third of what you would normally take when using regular THC products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The threshold dose for THC-O (the minimum dose needed to produce noticeable psychoactive effects) is roughly 2 mg oral or 0.5 mg inhaled.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This means anything higher than this is going to have psychoactive effects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The standard psychoactive dose range is between 1 and 5 mg when smoking, and 3 and 10 mg if taking it orally as a tincture or gummy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Psychedelic doses usually start around the 15 mg mark<\/strong>, but you should only ever attempt doses this high after you\u2019re familiar with the effects of THC-O at lower doses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    It\u2019s a good idea to start with the threshold dose whenever taking a new substance for the first time. Wait and see how it affects you before taking a higher dose on another occasion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    THC-O Dosage Summary<\/h3>\n\n\n\n