Why do people get the munchies after smoking or eating weed? Researchers at Washington State University say they’ve found out how cannabis stimulates appetite. It activates neurons in the brain “that typically are not active,” says Jon Davis, an assistant professor of neuroscience at WSU. “There is something important happening in the hypothalamus after vapor cannabis.”
The study was conducted on mice and found that cannabis activates neurons located in the hypothalamus, the area of the brain that controls vital functions, such as heart rate, hunger, and the release of hormones. Cannabis specifically enhances activity in the mediobasal hypothalamus, the brain region that regulates hunger.
One interesting aspect of the study is that too much weed can kill a mouse’s appetite. Mice exposed to a 200 mg dose of cannabis vapor displayed a significant increase in food intake compared to those exposed to just air. At the 100 mg dose, there was no significant difference in food intake from air exposure, and at the 400 mg dose, there was actually a significant decrease in food intake.
The researchers say that their findings are crucial for developing treatments for conditions like anorexia.
In related news, a chemistry expert has debunked the long-held idea that indica and sativa strains produce different mental effects.
