Man-Go Get High

Any seasoned smoker has heard the classic, “mangoes can get you more high” line before, but does it actually work and if so how? The answer to the first part is yes, but it’s a little more complex than that. The mango itself does not get you high rather it is a terpene found within the mango called myrcene. Myrcene is one of the three most popular terpenes found in the cannabis plant, and is responsible for the earthy and musky scent that cannabis gives off. However, myrcene has other effects than just giving off a strong odor. According to a study by Dr. Ethan Russo, a researcher who has provided much of the cannabis research we have today,  myrcene has been linked to relaxation aid, stress relief, and can provide a sedative effect to those who suffer from insomnia. So what does that sound like? Couch-lock. Every stoner knows what I’m talking about, that feeling you get after your 3^rdor 4^thrip of the bong, the back of your head starts to get heavy, you can feel weights on your eyes and you sit back with no intentions of moving. Even if you’re hungry, or want to change the channel, nope you’re just going to say “f**k it, I’m not getting up.” You probably get that feeling after smoking a heavy indica, interestingly enough it is the concentration of myrcene in a strain that is an indicator of whether it is sativa or indica; higher myrcene means indica, lower myrcene means sativa. So  you might be wondering, “if I eat a ton of mangoes will it knock me out?” The answer is a big fat no, mangoes can’t get you high, you still need weed for that. Without the weed you’ll just be eating mangos, what allows the myrcene in the mango to increase your high is a phenomenon, I wrote about in an earlier blog post, called the entourage effect. When myrcene interacts with THC the two provide beneficial effects to one another. Myrcene allows THC to flow into the blood stream more easily, while the THC amplifies the effects of the myrcene.

So back to our main point, how do mangoes get you high? It occurs when you eat a mango thereby adding additional amounts of myrcene to your body, which provides more for the THC to interact with. If you take it right you will get a more intense, and longer lasting high. To maximize the effects it is recommended that you eat a whole mango, 30 minutes to an hour before you smoke weed, just don’t have anything important planned for the next 4-5 hours.  Now that you know how to do this go buy some mangos, and if you don’t like mangoes (weird, they’re delicious) read next week to learn about some other foods that aid in your next sesh.