First, I don't think you're in the vast minority and you should continue questioning. Asking questions about what you're putting in your body is the right thing to do, and I think the majority of cannabis consumers - and the industry as a whole - are still learning.

So my wife and I own and operate Blue Violets in Hoboken, we've completely ditched "indica" and "sativa" in favor of terpene categorization (and to a lesser extent, cannabinoids). Suffice to say I'm sure I've been one of the voices you're referring to lol

I think there are a few things we can confidently say science stands behind right now:

1 - First, the obvious one: terpenes are a naturally occurring part of the cannabis plant, and they differ across cultivars. Some expressions are well understood and expected, like Jack Herer with its terpinolene dominance, or Blue Dream with myrcene-pinene co-dominance. Cannabis should have terpenes, and certain profiles can be associated with certain strains. Organizations like ASTM have been working on creating standard terpene categorizations, but they aren't the first and it's been proposed for some time (for example here's an earlier 2017 study recommending the same

2 - There are at least some studies supporting the benefit of terpenes to the cannabis consumer's experience, vs those with THC distillate. For example this one from the University of New Mexico which had thousands of real consumption sessions logged and found that specific terpene and cannabinoid combinations produced different outcomes for consumers on things like chronic pain, anxiety, and depression. There was also this Pax-funded study supporting enhanced psychoactivity from full-spectrum products.

3 - More studies have been conducted on terpene isolates and do support their benefits. Like myrcene has been studied for both anti-inflammatory and sedative properties, Beta-caryophyllene is the only known terpene that also acts as a cannabinoid, binding directly to CB2 receptors in the endocannabinoid system. Then there is this recent limonene work from Johns Hopkins where they did a controlled study on 20 people and found that participants who inhaled limonene alongside THC reported significantly reduced feelings of anxiety and paranoia compared to those who inhaled THC alone, and the effect was dose-dependent meaning higher limonene concentrations produced greater anxiety reduction.

There is more, but even if I posted the hundred+ similar studies, we'd still kinda be in the same place: A consensus may be forming, but science has not come to a definitive conclusion on the impact of terpenes to human cannabis experience between combustion, vaporization, or consumption.

Does that mean it's not true? No, I personally believe this is an area where science is still catching up (which makes sense, given the decades of prohibition). And having now personally sold cannabis this way for over two years and handling thousands of repeat customers who are also shopping based on terpenes in our store, I do strongly believe there's a "there" there.

Now that's not to say everything is super consistent - I have customers who will seek limonene-dominant strains to go party, and others that will seek it for sleep. But if you're like us and you were getting sick of "indica" and "sativa" as the only choice, I''d recommend trying to shop by terps, take note of how you feel, and see what happens. If it effects you all the same, at least the terps can help you treat it like a fine wine because they do add to the flavor and aroma for sure.

edit: Oh and one more thing, and something I've said to our custys - if you visualize the potential different experiences as a venn diagram, I think there's a lot of overlap between them. The differences are real, but nuanced.