Cannabis contains hundreds of compounds known as phytocannabinoids. Out of all these, cannabidiol and tetrahydrocannabinol are the most active phytocannabinoids in cannabis. The different effects of THC and CBD make the medicinal and recreational uses of cannabis possible.
The quantity of each of these cannabinoids decides whether cannabis is categorized as marijuana or industrial hemp. While marijuana is not legal federally, many state laws permit using it for both medical and recreational purposes.
Cannabis with 0.3% or less THC is industrial hemp, whereas more of it in the herb will result in the plant classified as marijuana. Agriculturalists grow cannabis to have higher amounts of either one of these cannabinoids.
Scientists may not distinguish between cannabis strains, but different THC and CBD concentrations will make different effects. Both compounds affect cannabinoid receptors differently. Therefore, marijuana that is higher in cannabidiol may have little to no mind-altering effect, whereas high-THC marijuana will have a greater psychotropic effect.
Cannabidiol can block some of THC’s mind-altering effects. That is why CBD-dominant marijuana users are less likely to be stoned as compared to THC-dominant users. THC and cannabidiol can work together, with other phytocannabinoids, flavonoids, and terpenes, to have the entourage effect.
Using cannabidiol itself will have no psychoactive effect on you, but ingesting a higher quantity of THC would have it. That is the main difference between CBD and THC.
That said, if you use a therapeutic quantity of THC, it would not have that effect of making you mentally stoned out. THC can have this effect through its impact on the dopamine levels in your brain. For your information, dopamine is a compound that allows sending messages between human nerve cells.
Research has not yet shown that cannabidiol has any effect on the human neurotransmitter dopamine. This explains why it does not affect the human mind the same way tetrahydrocannabinol does. Another interesting aspect of their relationship is how the presence of each component in a cannabis product influences the way it is used. More THC products usually come to the market as cannabis strains. So, people mostly ingest a greater quantity of THC through smoke as compared to other forms.
Conversely, if a cannabis product has a higher quantity of cannabidiol, and 0.3% or less THC, you could consume it in many more ways than THC products.