CBD for inflammation: What Studies Say?
Inflammation is an important feature of your body’s immune response. While short term inflammation is considered protective, chronic inflammation is linked to many diseases including heart disease, diabetes, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, etc. Keep reading to learn about CBD for inflammation.
Pain, heat, redness, and swelling are the most common symptoms of inflammation. Inflammation is commonly treated with NSAIDs also known as the non steroidal anti inflammatory drugs and steroid medications.
However, such anti inflammatory drugs have side effects and risks. Even some people take much more preventive approaches such as taking an anti inflammatory diet, supplements to treat inflammation.
How Does CBD Alleviate Inflammation?
Cannabinoids including CBD are said to contain anti-inflammatory properties. Some studies in cells, rodents and humans suggest that CBD can be a help treating inflammatory diseases. But more extensive research is needed to find out how it works.
Inflammation involves many signalling pathways and the body uses signalling molecules to initiate the inflammatory response. These signalling molecules are also known as eicosanoids. CBD can work by inhibiting an eicosanoid enzyme called COX2.
CBD was found to affect a class of molecules called cytokines. Cytokines are important for the inflammation process. CBD is believed to reduce inflammation by alleviating the effects of Cytokines.
What Do Studies Say?
Inflammation plays an important role in a number of diseases including asthma, allergies, inflammatory bowel disease, a number of autoimmune diseases, and other conditions like cancer, heart disease and diabetes.
Could CBD help? There is some evidence that the anti inflammatory properties of CBD might be a help treating such diseases.
In an animal study in 2008 conducted in mice found that CBD prevented the onset of Type-1 diabetes which is an autoimmune disease that attacks the beta cells of the pancreas.
Another study in 2013 conducted on a mouse model of multiple sclerosis found that CBD appeared to protect the subject against the harmful effects of inflammation.
A 2013 review concluded that CBD can help treat inflammatory bowel disease. However, a 2017 clinical trial concluded that CBD is a safe drug but ineffective for the condition. The authors said that their results could be due to the small doses of CBD, small number of patients, and the lack of synergism with other cannabinoids.
A 2015 review concluded that CBD was found to reduce inflammation through several pathways in the body.
A 2016 study investigated cannabidiol as a treatment for early pancreatic inflammation in diabetic mice. Pancreatic inflammation may lead to diabetes. The mice who received 10 weeks of treatment with CBD developed diabetes later than those who were not given CBD. Authors concluded that CBD was effective and showed a significant reduction in immune-cell activity.
A 2017 study examined the effects of CBD in rats with osteoarthritis. After two weeks of CBD treatment the inflammation of the joints was reduced. They also found that CBD helped prevent the development of nerve damage and joint pain.
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According to experts, CBD is likely to be one of the safest drugs for inflammatory diseases. They also added, one of the challenges is that it is still unknown what dose of CBD can alleviate what anti-inflammatory or immune related conditions.
The Bottom Line
Scientific research and anecdotal evidence suggest that CBD can be a potential drug for the treatment of inflammation. So far, most of the studies have been conducted on animals and more human trials need to be done to figure out how CBD oil works in humans.
