Are Terpenes Legal In Australia?

So, are terpenes legal in Australia?

Yes, they're 100% legal in Australia.

There is no law that classifies terpenes as a prohibited substance.

Terpene blends can be bought over the counter or online without a prescription.

There exist terpene blends that target specific ailments such as stress, anxiety, and/or inflammation, for example.

You can buy terpene blends from overseas online retailers and not face any issues with shipping and customs.

As long as your terpenes are not derived from cannabis, you're good with the law.

However, if your terpenes are derived from cannabis, then you may face trouble with the law in Australia.

According to the Office of Drug Control (ODC) in Australia, "only the seeds of the hemp plant can be used for human consumption - extracts from the remainder of the plant are considered a drug."

So, as long as your terpenes are not derived from cannabis like our terpene and hemp seed oil blend, you won't be breaking any laws.

Now that you know the legal status of terpenes, you may be wondering...

 

What Are Terpenes, Exactly?

Terpenes are aromatic compounds that give plants their flavour and aroma.

Terpenes are found in fruits and plants including cannabis.

Terpenes have become popular because they have therapeutic effects.

Some noted therapeutic effects of terpenes include but are not limited to:

• anti-inflammatory
• anti-anxiety
• anti-stress
• anti-depressive
• anti-insomnia

More clinical research is required to establish the therapeutic efficacy of terpenes. 

Why Are Terpenes Important?

We're learning more about terpenes and how they can improve our daily lives.

What we know is that terpenes help bring homeostasis to the body.

Terpenes achieve homeostasis by binding to CB1 receptors working in harmony with your endocannabinoid system (ECS).

Homeostasis is the biological process by which your body maintains its stability and equilibrium.

Various terpenes including ones that are cannabis-derived continue to be researched extensively by today's scientific community.

Terpenes are at the cutting edge of new applications for medicinal marijuana.

Terpenes have been found to affect how we feel when applied to the skin, inhaled, or consumed.

Terpenes have also been found to carry out necessary biological functions that produce vitamins, hormones, and pheromones.

6 Most Common Terpenes

There are about 20,000 terpenes in existence.

The cannabis plant has just over 100 terpenes, but these are out of bounds in Australia at the moment.

The most common terpenes in circulation, their location, and therapeutic effects are:

• Myrcene; found in hops, lemongrass, basil, ylang ylang, and mango; helps promote sleep, reduce pain, and inflammation
• Linalool; found in jasmine, lavender, rosewood, and thyme; helps reduce pain, inflammation, stress, and convulsions
• Limonene; found in lemon, lime, and orange; helps reduce inflammation, stress and anxiety, heartburn, gastroesophageal reflux, eases metabolic disorders, promotes weight-loss, soothes skin, and boosts your immune system
• Pinene; found in pine tree's, orange peel, rosemary, and basil; help as an anti-inflammatory in the lungs and airways
• Humulene; found in hops, black pepper, and ginseng; helps as an anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and promotes weight loss
• Geraniol; found in rose oil, citronella, lemongrass, and lavender; helps as an anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and anti-oxidant

In Closing...

Terpenes in general a legal for human use and consumption in Australia.

The only time you may have a problem with the law is if your terpenes are cannabis-derived.

Even with that in mind, you can still benefit from terpene use because they're abundant in the botanical kingdom.

Now if you're looking for a natural solution that will help with stress, anxiety, and sleep, then check out our terpene and hemp seed oil blend.

It blends hemp seed oil (which is also legal in Australia) with the terpenes myrcene, linalool, and limonene to create the ultimate calming formula.

 

Sources

• Cox-Georgian D., Ramadoss N., Dona C., Basu C. (2019) Therapeutic and Medicinal Uses of Terpenes. In: Joshee N., Dhekney S., Parajuli P. (eds) Medicinal Plants. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-31269-5_15
• The Office of Drug Control Australia (ODC), 5th July 2019, Hemp Products, Substances & Products which may be imported without a licence and permit under the PI Regulations
• Alexandra M.S. Carvalho, Luana Heimfarth, Klécia A. Santos, Adriana G. Guimarães, Laurent Picot, Jackson R.G.S. Almeida, Jullyana S.S. Quintans, Lucindo J. Quintans-Júnior, Terpenes as possible drugs for the mitigation of arthritic symptoms – A systematic review, Phytomedicine,
  Volume 57, 2019, Pages 137-147, ISSN 0944-7113, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phymed.2018.10.028. (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S094471131830549X)
• Nengguo Tao, Yue Chen, Yalan Wu, Xiao Wang, Lu Li, Andan Zhu,
  The terpene limonene induced the green mold of citrus fruit through regulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) homeostasis in Penicillium digitatum spores, Food Chemistry, Volume 277, 2019, Pages 414-422, ISSN 0308-8146, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2018.10.142. (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308814618319253)