The therapeutic value of CBD is almost unbelievable. For decades, outdated laws have banned a plant that produces what may become one of the most important medicines for modern disease.
CBD is polypharmacological, meaning that it can affect multiple different pathways in the body at once. This makes it extremely difficult to study, as it is almost impossible to tell what effect these different interactions have upon each other. However, regardless of a lack of high-quality human trials, many medical cannabis patients find relief with this calming cannabinoid. Here are a few of the common reasons patients use CBD:
- Cancer
- Diabetes
- Lupus
- Motor disorders
- Nicotine addiction
- Parkinson’s Disease
- Chronic and neuropathic pain
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
- Osteoporosis
- Various pediatric conditions
3 major conditions helped by CBD
1. Epileptic Disorders
[media_video url=”https://youtu.be/NtxpSmHrtdo” width=”300″ height=”200″ _fw_coder=”aggressive” __fw_editor_shortcodes_id=”a8239420a948ff39fdf142c569dbdf71″][/media_video]As the anecdote about Charlotte Figi has hopefully made clear, the endocannabinoid system may play a key role in the future treatment of epilepsy. Recently, a British pharmaceutical company, GW Pharmaceuticals, has had successful phase III trials with a pure CBD medication for epilepsy.
The drug is named Epidiolex, and it has already shown favorable results for patients with Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. In other research, CBD has been found to increase the efficacy of other common anti-epileptic drugs and is known to be neuroprotective. In theory, this helps keep brain cells healthy and reduces cell damage.
2. Schizophrenia and Psychotic Disorders
The topics of schizophrenia and psychosis have long been major points of contention in cannabis medicine. You might find it surprising, then, that CBD is anti-psychotic. A 2015 review published in Schizophrenia Research suggested that CBD’s ability to reduce the psychoactive qualities of THC may also be helpful for schizophrenia patients.
THC affects brain regions like the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. The THC activity in these regions is thought to contribute to the herb’s psychoactive effects. Incidentally, these brain regions are also implicated in schizophrenia. The review suggests that it is possible that the opposite effects of CBD and THC in this region could provide a new window into new schizophrenia research.
Coupled with traditional medication, early trials with CBD as a supplemental treatment for schizophrenia were successful with an impressive safety profile. The potent anti-inflammatory properties of CBD may also lend to its anti-psychotic properties. Psychosis has been linked to increased inflammation in the brain.
3. Anxiety
Has consuming marijuana ever made you feel more anxious? Well, the problem might be too much THC, not enough CBD. As mentioned above, CBD and THC work opposite of each other. One is a stimulating psychoactive, the other a compound that works to quell unnecessary psychoactivity.
Though THC is known to cause paranoia, CBD is an excellent option for the canna-curious who are nervous about a psychoactive experience.
The cannabinoid may even ease the discomfort of social anxiety as well. In a 2011 study, researchers recruited 10 patients with social anxiety. The patients had not yet received any medical treatments for their disorder.
Patients were given either 400 mg of CBD or a placebo in a double-blind experiment. The CBD treatment successfully improved subjective anxiety symptoms when compared to a placebo.