What the heck is HHC?
Millions of people around the world are discovering the benefits of hemp-derived cannabidiol (HHC), and are turning to alternative products as a result. There's no doubt that HHC is here to stay. But how does it work? How safe is it?
Read on for everything you need to know about HHC, including its effects and benefits, how it's made, and more.
Jolly gets a lot of questions about HHC.
What is it? How is it made? Is it safe? How potent is it? What are the benefits and effects of HHC use? And most importantly, is HHC legal?
What is it? HHC or Hexahydrocannabinol is a relative to THC, occurring naturally in cannabis but in amounts too small to make extraction cost-effective. “HHC was first created in 1944 by the American chemist Roger Adams, when he added hydrogen molecules to Delta-9 THC. This process, known as hydrogenation, converts THC to hexahydrocannabinol (HHC). Hydrogenation isn’t limited to cannabinoid production. A similar process is used to convert vegetable oil to margarine. While Adams created HHC from conventional cannabis-derived THC, these days the cannabinoid is typically derived through a process that begins with hemp, the low-THC cannabis plant that was made federally legal by Congress in the 2018 farm bill. “ (Leafly)
How Is HHC Made? The process, called Hydrogenation, modifies the structure of delta 9 THC by replacing a double bond with two hydrogen atoms, which changes its molecular weight and also makes it more stable. Our organic process protects the purity of the cannabidiol, ensuring that our final product has a high potency.
Is it safe? How potent is it? What are the benefits and effects of HHC use? HHC does have noticeable effects. Reports from users generally describe the HHC high as being somewhere between delta 8 and delta 9 THC. Pretty much everything we know about HHC’s effects and side effects is anecdotal. That said, users report the same set of side effects familiar to delta 9 THC users: anxiety and paranoia, dry mouth, dry and red eyes, hunger, and insomnia. A 2011 study showed that some synthetic analogs of hexahydrocannabinol (HHC) “strongly inhibited breast cancer cell-induced angiogenesis and tumor growth.” Japanese researchers published a paper in 2007 describing HHC’s impressive pain-blocking capability in mice. But it is probably too early to say whether HHC has great promise as a therapeutic drug.
is HHC legal?
Since Jolly products contain only HHC made from 100% Hemp extract, companies are able to fully legally manufacture, distribute and sell to consumers in the United States. The 2018 Farm Bill federally legalized the hemp plant and all its derivatives, unless the plant or anything made from it contains delta 9 THC at a concentration higher than 0.3 percent. HHC technically isn’t THC at all, so it should skirt federal scrutiny.
Conclusions:
- HHC is a hydrogenated form of THC.
- HHC induces effects similar to THC and has comparable potency.
- HHC has a much longer shelf-life than THC.
- HHC is more resistant to heat and UV exposure than THC.
- HHC may not show up on a standard THC drug test, but this isn’t verified.
Only time will tell if HHC is the Cannabinoid we all never knew we needed.
References:
- https://worldwide.espacenet.com/patent/search/family/024105324/publication/US2419937A?q=pn%3DUS2419937
- https://www.leafly.com/news/strains-products/what-is-hhc
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iKczqO1TiE
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20950604/
- https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Antinociceptive-effects-of-9a-OH-HHC-and-8-OH-iso-HHC-in-mice_tbl1_225788188