A: The term “entourage effect” was coined by Mechoulam and Shimon Ben-Shabat in a cannabinoid study in 1999. In the study, they suggested that this phenomenon explains why botanical drugs (containing the entire spectrum of compounds within a plant) can sometimes be more effective than the plant’s isolated components. This is a consequence of the synergistic interaction between multiple cannabinoids and terpenes and the body’s endocannabinoid system.
