Beneficial Properties of CBD
Cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) are the two main components of cannabis. Compared to THC, CBD is non-psychoactive. In other words, with CBD, you can take advantage of the health benefits of cannabis without experiencing intoxicating effects.
This is the reason why more and more people are turning to CBD. That said, it’s still best to consult your doctor before making any decisions about changing your treatment. In the meantime, let’s take a look at some painful conditions where CBD may help.
Chronic Pain
Chronic pain is any pain that lasts more than three months. It might be mild or severe, depending on the source of the pain. Many traditional painkillers and other treatments can be very hard on the body, causing adverse effects such as respiratory depression, constipation, and nausea. In more serious cases, negative side effects include cognitive impairment, swelling, urinary retention, and dependence.[1]
One of the most well-known properties of CBD is its analgesic properties.[2] And a review from 2018 showed that CBD can be of great help when it comes to general pain management.[3]
Arthritis Pain
Arthritis is a disease that affects the joints causing pain, stiffness, swelling, and other unpleasant symptoms. Just like with chronic pain, many people are treating arthritis symptoms with CBD. Pre-clinical studies have indicated that CBD can both reduce joint inflammation and pain, making it a very beneficial treatment for arthritis.[4]
With proper guidance from a doctor, CBD can help with many arthritis-related symptoms. That said, even though there are no major side effects for using CBD in this manner, there are potential drug interactions that patients should be aware of.
Migraines
Migraines are one of the greatest medical mysteries that affect 14.7% of the entire population. It’s the third most common disease in the world (right after dental caries and tension-type headache). There are some treatments that help alievate of the pain but many come with negative side effects, including warm sensations, dizziness, chest pressure, and muscle weakness.
There are many reports of patients using CBD who claim that it changed their lives completely. And a 2017 review summarized pre-clinical evidence and findings from cases supporting the use of CBD (and THC) to lessen intense migraine pain.[5] A restrospective chart review also showed that cannabis could reduce the frequency of migraine headaches; however, researchers weren’t focused only on CBD, so we don’t know how it would work without combining it with THC.[6]
Cancer Treatment Pain
Cancer treatments are associated with many negative side effects, including anemia, fatigue, hair loss, nausea, vomiting, pain, and sleep problems. Even though CBD can’t help with every single one of them, there are some symptoms that it might ease.
Research has demonstrated that CBD can help reduce chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting. It can also help a great deal with pain, as well as with the lack of appetite.[7] If using CBD to manage treatment side effects, it’s important to discuss this with your doctor, as CBD can interact with several cancer treatments.
Bottom Line
More research is needed to understand how this cannabinoid affects our body in the short- and long-term. There aren’t conclusive data to prove that CBD should be the preferred treatment for pain management but many researchers and doctors agree that it has a lot of potential, especially for treating chronic pain.
That said, CBD is not a magical cure for everything! What it can be, though, is a way for us to learn more about our own body and develop much more effective medical treatments in the near future.
Image Source: https://www.royalqueenseeds.com/blog-how-cannabis-and-massage-combine-to-create-powerful-pain-relief-n478
References
- Khansari M, et al. The useage of opioids and their adverse effects in gastrointestinal practice: A review. Middle East J Dig Dis. 2013;5(1):5-16.
- Russo EB.Cannabinoids in the management of difficult to treat pain. Ther Clin Risk Manag. 2008;4(1):245-259.
- Baron EP, et al. Patterns of medicinal cannabis use, strain analysis, and substitution effect among patients with migraine, headache, arthritis, and chronic pain in a medicinal cannabis cohort. J Headache Pain. 2018;19(1):1-28.
- Philpott HT, et al. Attenuation of early phase inflammation by cannabidiol prevents pain and nerve damage in rat osteoarthritis. Pain. 2017;158(12):2442-2451.
- Lochte BC, et al. The use of cannabis for headache disorders. Cannabis Cannabinoid Res. 2017;2(1):61-71.
- Rhyne DN, et al. Effects of medical marijuana on migraine headache frequency in an adult population. Pharmacotherapy. 2016;36(5):505-510.
- Velasco G, et al. The use of cannabinoids as anticancer agents. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2016;64:259-266.
