Knotty Boy Dread Stuff

Why Hemp?

You'll notice that most Knotty Boy products have organic Hempseed Oil in them. What's up with that?

The Cannabis Sativa plant is truly one of God's most useful gifts for humanity in the plant kingdom.  The seeds, which are the source of rich oil, the stalks, and yes, the flowers, all have countless amazing attributes that can benefit us humans in so many ways!

But what’s the difference between marijuana and hemp?

Simply put, they are different strains of the same plant. Marijuana is bred for its medicinal and recreational properties and contains a high percentage of the chemical THC, the psychotropic ingredient found in the leaves and flowers of the female plant, but not in the stalks or seeds. Hemp is bred for its desirable industrial properties, and contains a near-zero amount of THC. In fact, hemp contains another chemical known as CBD which acts to block a marijuana high, making it more of an ‘anti-marijuana’.

Hempy Goodness

The seeds of the cannabis plant are said to be the most nutritionally complete food source on earth. No other single food source provides such complete protein, in such an easily digestible form, nor has the oils essential to life in such a perfect ratio.  One plant can produce at least a liter of seeds (that's 55 million seeds/hectare), and they contain no THC (that means they don't get you high, champ). These wonderful little seeds contain:

•     22.5% protein
•     30% fat
•     5.7% moisture
•     5.9% ash
•     503cal/100g energy
•     35.8% carbohydrates
•     vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, B6, C, D, E,
•     the highest total essential fatty acids and essential amino acids found in one single food    source.

Essential fatty acids (EFAs) are organic compounds vital to the body's maintenance, and especially eye and brain activity.  They are also responsible for the luster of your hair and skin (used internally as well as externally).  The body cannot produce these acids itself, so it must obtain them from outside sources. Knotty Boy products contain organic Hempseed Oil in order to give your locks the nutrients they need to stay healthy and strong.  The EFAs help restore and replenish hair, which is especially helpful for older dreads which may have become dry and brittle, or have simply lost their life.  Hempseed Oil is one of nature's little miracles, and it will do wonders for your lovely locks!

Other Plant Uses

The stalks of the plant can be used to make nearly everything, from the strongest rope, the most durable fabric and the highest quality paper, to building materials (concrete, particle board, paint, insulation, etc) and so much more.  The stats are astounding.  Our ecology would benefit incredibly if hemp was instated at the industrial level in even just a FEW ways. A big nappy word-up to the people who are out there every day spreading the word and trying to save what is left of this poor, abused planet by utilizing hemp!

The flowers and "buds", the most notorious part of the marijuana strain of the plant, have extensive medicinal values that have been utilized for centuries - virtually all centuries since creation, except ours!  Known as marijuana, pot, dope, and a multitude of other colourful titles ('hippy crack' always makes us laugh around here), it is one of the most widely used "drugs" in the world.  However, there are also many highly effective medicinal uses for this wonderful plant, such as treatment for:

•     epilepsy (anti-convulsant)
•     cancer (pain relief, anti-nauseant, appetite stimulant - THC has also reportedly reduced tumors in mice by 82%!)
•     AIDS (pain relief, anti-nauseant, appetite stimulant)
•     multiple sclerosis (pain relief, also slowing the development of this disease)
•     glaucoma
•     para- and quadriplegia
•     migraines
•     asthma
•     rheumatism
•     arthritis
•     muscular dystrophy
•     cholesterol-reducer and inhibitor                                           

The list goes on and on. Marijuana is one of the world's most useful medicines, and it can be grown in virtually any back yard with no need for fertilizers or pesticides.  It is not addictive, impossible to overdose, yet it is illegal around the world. Even Holland, where it is decriminalized, only 3% of teens smoke it anyway!

"Prohibition goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man's appetite by legislation, and makes a crime out of things that are not crimes." Abe Lincoln, 1840

FAST FACTS

•     the first Bibles were printed on hemp paper
•     the first US flag was made out of hemp
•     the US Constitution and Declaration of Independence were printed on hemp paper
•     an acre of hemp produces more than 4 times the amount of paper than an acre of trees, and it grows back in less than a year
•     Henry Ford made a hemp-mobile
•     "marijuana" is the Hispanic name for hemp. The name "marijuana" was adopted by US law enforcement and the media for this "Mexican killer weed" to taboo and sensationalize it in concerned American's minds in the early 1900’s    
•     birds live 20% longer when hemp seed is a part of their diet
•     Hempseed Oil has been used (and should be used) in everything from engine oil and paint, to cosmetics and foods for man and beast alike
•     in the 1600s, there were places in the US where growing hemp was enforced by law
•     you could pay your taxes with hemp for 200 years during the 1700s in the US
•     hemp seeds have been a staple and a life-saver during many famines and food shortages throughout history. Over 60% of children in underdeveloped countries are dying because of protein starvation -imagine if they could be fed with hempseed!
•     there are receptors in the brain which science has found will bind with THC compounds alone, and no other
•     the depletion of the ozone layer threatens to reduce soy crops by up to 50%, but hemp is immune to the damages of ultraviolet light (it actually makes it produce more of the resin that contains the THC)
•     hemp is a more prolific producer of ethanol than corn
•     hemp requires little to no industry, growing in the ground (cleaning the soil of toxins), and then cut, dried, and utilized. Does it make any sense that our governments don't legalize it and tax the pants off of it instead of increasing everyone's already-insane taxes to reduce our countries’ deficits? Tax pot!
•     trees used for paper take 50 to 500 years to grow, while hemp can be cultivated in as little as 100 days and over a 20 year period can yield 4 times more paper
•     the plant simply rocks the spot

"And God said, Behold, I have given you every green herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat."
-Genesis 1:29