Many regular cannabis users will personally attest that the plant is beneficial to their day-to-day wellbeing, and now, new data published by Jointly seems to confirm what many already believe to be true. The cannabis data company shared new findings last week, using the experiences of more than 200,000 consumers documented through the Jointly platform.
The report, titled “Theory of Purposeful Cannabis Consumption,” argues that purposefully consumed cannabis, for people over the age of 21, can aid in people’s wellbeing.
The Jointly data follows another recent survey released earlier this summer, showing that 91% of adults over 21 who have ever consumed cannabis did so for health and wellness purposes, inadvertently providing additional proof and context to explain these and other comparable figures.
David Kooi, CEO and co-founder of Jointly, attests that we already know “cannabis makes you more, not less.” Now, there’s data to prove the notion through Jointly, which he calls the world’s “first experience-based platform for purposeful consumption.”
“The Theory is a framework to free the modern cannabis consumer to pursue the better life that is possible through purposeful consumption, without guilt or prejudice, and armed with data,” Kooi said.
Jointly’s Theory of Purposeful Cannabis Consumption has four key elements, what Kooi calls the Four Laws of Purposeful Consumption, supported by the new data in combination with other established sources. Kooi said that this data makes it clear that purposefully consumed cannabis can partner in one’s wellbeing, “Though it’s also important to underscore that cannabis is for adults only, is not for everyone, and that more data is needed on long-term impact,” he added.
The first law, “Plant,” deems that cannabis is a complex plant, producing a variety of effects. “Cannabis is not one uniform entity,” Kooi notes in the report, adding that the plant is made of more than 400 different phytochemicals, including cannabinoid compounds that sometimes have opposing effects. To further illustrate the complex nature of the plant, Jointly lists a number of potential outcomes in using cannabinoids like THC, CBD, CBN, CBG, along with a number of terpenes.
Jointly’s data also shows, based on analysis of the 200,000 experiences, that product choice impacts the effectiveness of a cannabis experience by 40-57%.
“The data show clearly that there are products that perform better in statistically significant ways for specific purposes, while those same products perform worse than others for other purposes. The product that helps you sleep better is not the one that stimulates your creativity,” the report reads.
The second law, “Purposes,” explains that people use cannabis for a variety of different productive purposes. Jointly notes that the prevailing stigma teaches society that people solely use cannabis to get high, but the picture is much larger.
The company’s data found that Jointly users largely used cannabis to relax and refresh (22%), relieve everyday stress (19%), improve sleep (11%), energize and uplift (10%), ease everyday pain (9%), enjoy social experiences (7%), focus and create (7%), stimulate appetite (6%), enhance intimacy (3%), recover from exercise (3%) and “other” (3%).
These reasons are also mirrored in a 2022 survey by New Frontier Data.
The third law, “People,” explains that cannabis affects each person differently. Kooi puts it in simple terms in the report: “The best product for me is not necessarily the best product for you. It depends on your purpose. It also depends on our unique bodies and minds.”
The report goes on to explain that the endocannabinoid system varies by individual and across populations, playing a role in memory, appetite, energy balance and metabolism, stress response, analgesia and sleep. Ultimately, Jointly’s data point toward this truth, showing that product performance is not uniform across people.
Finally, the fourth and final law, “Conditions,” says that people realize their goals with cannabis more often when they create the conditions for a good experience.
Jointly’s data shows that people rank the effectiveness of their experience at 6.75 out of 10 on average. The data also shows that factors like setting, exercise, hydration, diet and sleep impact the effectiveness of the consumer experience by 40-50%. As consumers refine these factors, they are more likely to rate their experiences a 9 or 10.
Citing the 2022 New Frontier Data survey once more, Kooi notes that 81% of consumers said that cannabis has had a “very positive positive” or “somewhat positive” effect on their lives, with 13% mixed positive and negative, 5% reporting no impact and less than 2% somewhat or very negative.
Kooi says, even with six parts (the four laws, an introduction and conclusion,) the presentation deliberately left out subjects like cannabis and self-discovery, cannabis and self-acceptance, cannabis and becoming more open and how cannabis can help connect folks to the people and surroundings in their lives.
“I don’t think we can quantify those benefits. But try out purposeful consumption and I hope you’ll see what I mean,” Kooi says in the report’s conclusion.
Check out the full report here.
