Thank the Pink Boost Goddess: a cannabis strain that doesn't give the munchies

The munchies are never pretty. Apparently it takes a Goddess to whisk them away.

To prove it, I devised a diabolical experiment for a friend and myself. More on that below.

One of the first medical uses for cannabis was to increase appetite for cancer patients, but it also works that way for healthy people. I don't (usually) regret having an extra piece of chicken at dinner, but snacking before bedtime makes me ashamed of myself. But it feels like I can't help it.

A Holy Grail in the cannabis world is a flower that does not give you the munchies. Supposedly the cannabinoid THCV has this effect, but it hadn't worked for me in the past. A strain called Durban Poison, noted for its high level of THCV, made me crave sugar even more: this is bad.

Thus I was skeptical when Flow Kana reached out to me to try a limited-edition strain called Pink Boost Goddess which the company claims minimizes the munchies.



I like Flow Kana; it's a company that works with small farmers and gives them the credit, including for this strain, which was grown from seed by Emerald Spirit Botanicals in Mendocino County. But still.

I told the sales rep when she showed up to hand off the sample (no UPS or FedEx for cannabis samples) that THCV had not worked for me before. She said that they have found it works better for women; hence the name. Fair enough. I had to design an experiment with a female friend.

I contacted a fellow food writer and we agreed to smoke Pink Boost Goddess in the afternoon. Here was our experiment design:

* We ate dim sum for breakfast, followed by burgers for lunch. Not gross overeating, but on the high side of daytime consumption. This meant that if we got hungry prematurely, it was almost certainly the munchies.

* We smoked Pink Boost Goddess together at about 1:30 pm. If I indulge at 7 pm, the munchies usually hit me hardest after 10 pm. Using that time frame, if we had cravings before dinner, it was the munchies.

* Here is the diabolical part.

Both of us had to have our own personal munchie kryptonite in plain sight all afternoon and evening. For my friend, it was Oreos and a cheddar-jalapeno muffin. For me, it was nerdy upscale M&M knockoffs along with a chocolate chip cookie. And a mini bag of real M&Ms just for good measure.

We indulged on schedule. We both got high -- that's why you smoke, right? It was a relaxed buzz at first for my friend -- she described it as peaceful, though short of euphoric -- while I found myself standing and talking a lot. Music was awesome. That part worked. (My friend later reported she got "babbly" on the way home.)

We had some iced tea (unsweetened, of course), and enjoyed that, but otherwise we didn't take in anything flavored at all.

About 3 pm my friend went home. A while later I started thinking about having a fresh kumquat I had picked off a tree the day before. But I resisted, and I think a kumquat in the afternoon is hardly the munchies I need to avoid.

My friend had more cravings than I did. "Seriously considering ordering fudge (delivery); didn't," she texted me. Ultimately, she wrote, "I did feel some cravings, but not sure if that was because of munchies or just because treats not normally available were in the house." She ordered a burrito for dinner and said, "I didn't finish my burrito. I usually do." Her husband got into the Oreos and later that night remarked, "I can't believe those are just sitting here," but she resisted.

My experience was almost miraculous. I simply was not hungry for hours. About 8:30 pm I warmed up some leftovers because I thought I should; I was afraid I would wake up in the middle of the night hungry. I ate about a half-size of my normal dinner and felt stuffed. I had no cravings the rest of the night. Goddess be praised!

Image courtesy Khronus

The next day I indulged in a hybrid strain called Pineapple Cake, not known to contain THCV, before dinner. Then at 10 pm the munchies hit me harder than usual, plus I was unfortunately overprepared for them. Not just the nerdy upscale M&Ms; I had Roquefort cheese on bagel-spiced pretzel crisps; I had ... you know, I don't need to share all this. I ate things I'm ashamed of. That's enough.

It's a small sample size, I know, but Pink Boost Goddess worked for me, and has continued to on subsequent "tests." That's right, it's just testing.

Pink Boost Goddess is a limited edition strain and only available in a few dispensaries, including Harborside in Oakland and San Jose, Sweet Flower in Los Angeles, ATA in Sacramento, Urbn Leaf in San Diego, Haven in Orange County, and Sespe Creek Collective in Ojai. For more information, check out the Flow Kana website.

And PLEASE don't send me any M&Ms.

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