CBD (cannabidiol)

5 Ways in Which CBD Can Help Seniors

August 21, 2017 By John Reed Leave a Comment

The cannabis plant with its different components (cannabinoids as they are scientifically known) has been proven to carry a plethora of medicinal benefits. In late years, we have come to know which exactly of these cannabinoids is responsible for most of these benefits. Cannabidiol, or CBD, is the non-psychoactive component of cannabis that we attribute most of the medicinal uses of marijuana to. A huge number of diseases are now being prescribed CBD extracts for pain relief and other forms of treatment, and people who regularly use CBD-rich strains of marijuana have been reporting less vulnerability to several diseases and ailments. There is one demographic segment that was late to catch up on the uses of CBD: seniors. Although seniors have lately started to increasingly realize how beneficial CBD could be to their many forms of pain, the many benefits that substance has to offer them went unnoticed for a long time. That is quite bizarre too, seeing as how seniors more than perhaps any other groups have a lot to gain from CBD treatment.

So, how can CBD help seniors? Here is a list of 5 major health difficulties that seniors often experience and that CBD has proven capable of remedying.

Reduction of pain and inflammation

CBD was found a long time ago to cause relief for pains caused by arthritis, neuropathy, spasticity, Crohn’s disease, ALS or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, as well as numerous types of cancer. Moreover, the recurrent headaches and migraines experienced by most seniors can also be prevented using CBD.

Sufferers of diseases like atherosclerosis, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, spinal cord injuries, as well as injuries suffered after medical operations, are now being prescribed CBD for its anti-inflammatory and pain-killing effects. We can also add Hepatitis C and lupus to the list of diseases prevalent among seniors and whose patients benefit from CBD’s anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative benefits.

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Bones

A common symptom of aging is the decrease in bone density, which is followed by a proneness to get osteoporosis which in turn makes seniors vulnerable to bone fractures. Women over 50 are even more vulnerable than men in this regard due to the crackdown on bone tissues that comes with menopause. That makes CBD crucial for seniors in both a preventive and a curative sense. CBD was found to halt the damage of bone tissues. Not only that, it was even discovered to trigger the renewal of these tissues as well as bone growth. These effects combined lead to the increase of bone density that the elderly very much need. Moreover, CBD extracts work perfectly to counter muscle and bone pains.

Sleep Difficulties

Many seniors experience difficulties falling asleep, sleeping for long hours, or generally maintaining healthy sleep patterns. The hazardous effect of that on seniors is that inconsistent sleep paired with age stimulate neurodegenerative diseases like glaucoma, Alzheimer’s, along with many other possible diseases. The benefits of CBD in this regard are manifold. Firstly, unlike pharmaceutical sleep aids, CBD actually enhances alertness and wakefulness throughout the day. However, CBD works as a sleeping aid only when consumed early in the day. It was reported to enable sleep for longer hours which makes it suitable for someone suffering insomnia. CBD also treats some of the most common causes of insomnia like stress and anxiety, therefore hitting the ailment at its roots. Anxiety and distress are highly common among seniors and might be intensified by their physical pain. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, CBD is a much safer alternative to pharmaceutical drugs in general and sleep aid in particular. This takes us to the next point.

The Reduction of Pharmaceutical Drug Consumption

It is no longer news that excessive use of pharmaceutical drugs can be quite destructive to a person’s body. This is something that especially seniors can testify to. Because old people are prescribed countless amounts of pharmaceuticals for the various age-related diseases they endure, many of them end up in a loop of drugs that cause them side effects that they are prescribed new drugs to treat and so on. By using CBD to treat the ailments mentioned above as well as many others that they suffer, a lot of seniors have lately been able to lay off, or at least reduce, their consumption of dangerous pharmaceutical drugs.

There are many reasons why replacing pharmaceutical drugs with CBD products leaves patients way better off. First of all, CBD (or any other marijuana-based substance for that matter) cannot be addictive. Unlike many pharmaceutical drugs, especially those used to treat psychological difficulties or insomnia, the withdrawal symptoms of CBD are as mild as those of quitting caffeine. Second, CBD has little to no side effects, which anyone who has any experience with long-term use of pharmaceuticals knows is not the case with the latter. A person weighing 140 pounds would require north of 4 pounds of marijuana to be consumed all in one day to reach the point of toxicity, according to a recent study.

Appetite Enhancement

Many seniors tend to experience appetite loss as they grow in age, which can lead to mental and psychological issues, their tissues growing more delicate and consequently weak, as well as weight loss with all its hazardous consequences. Marijuana has been known for long to be an appetite stimulant. That applies particularly to its CBD component. However, CBD’s appetite-related effects are not confined to increasing appetite. It generally brings about healthier nutritional behavior, meaning that albeit an appetite stimulant, it does not cause excessive food consumption. The American Journal of Epidemiology recently found in one of its studies that obesity occurred one-third less frequently among regular marijuana consumers (at least three times a week) in comparison to those who have never consumed the plant at all.

Are there safe ways for seniors to use CBD?

Because smoking CBD-rich marijuana strains is probably not the best method for seniors to consume CBD, dispensaries have lately been producing alternatives that are safer for seniors to use. That includes oil, edibles like CBD-infused gummy bears, and tinctures that they could place under their tongues.

5 Significant Diseases That CBD Can Treat

July 31, 2017 By John Reed Leave a Comment

For centuries, the use of marijuana has proven in different parts of the world to be capable of remedying many disease-inflicted pains. A lot of research has been done in the past few decades to verify these claims. We came to know the component most responsible for these effects, and it is Cannabidiol(CBD). And while some effects were found unrelated to the use of CBD or marijuana in general, many studies have confirmed its medicinal effects and they are countless.

Here is a list of the most significant 5 diseases that CBD can help treat:

Multiple Sclerosis

First off, this is a breakdown of this neurodegenerative autoimmune disorder. MS attacks the patient’s brain, optic nerve and spinal cord. What it does is cause the immune system to misread neurons as dangerous attackers. That prompts the body’s immune cells to fight any neurons they detect. That results in the brain’s disability to send basic signals to the body. That is, of course, since the brain does that via those neurons that the immune system starts attacking. Because of the damage that the body brings upon itself, a scar tissue starts to emerge.

Millions of people around the world suffer from this disease, but up until now it is incurable. All of the treatments aim to merely ease the symptoms’ effect on the patient by hindering the disease’s advancement and prompting the body to recover quicker from the attacks. All around the world now, there are countries where cannabis has gained legitimacy as a preferable alternative to conventional MS medications, either through direct consumption of the plant, or through CBD oil or any other extract of it.

Cannabis components work on treating almost every symptom of the disease’s activity inside the body. Most importantly, it protects the patient’s brain from it. The non-psychoactive cannabis component, CBD, works as an anti-inflammatory. It counters the effects of the pro-inflammatory proteins that the patient’s brain releases which are called cytokine. These proteins cause excessive inflammation in the patient’s brain when they are released following the activation of the immune system. By deactivating the immune system, CBD is able to effectively calm it down and stop it from attacking the central nervous system.

CBD also eases the pains that occur with the creation of the scar tissue we mentioned above. The breakdown of the swelled/irritated tissues is often tormenting to patients. That is where CBD comes into play. It has a well-proven analgesic effect. It also helps ease the spasticity that affects the muscles of 20% of MS patients. Uncontrollable muscle twitching is another symptom that occurs when the nerve cells responsible for movement are damaged by inflammation, and CBD counters that, too. CBD also eases digestion, helps MS patients fall asleep (something they often face difficulty with), remedies their recurrent depression, and protects their eye from the blurry vision MS often causes by causing inflammation to optic nerve.

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Cancer

It is not news anymore that several marijuana components were found to have therapeutic benefits for cancer patients. The prospects of this use for cannabis have been discussed since the 60s and perhaps even earlier. The degrees of this treatment are debatable, however. According to some studies, some components of cannabis are capable of outright curing the disease. Other studies say that the plant only offers pain relief and a slowdown of the disease’s progression. Up until now, the latter assumption is more credible. In all cases, thousands or even millions of cancer patients around the world have benefited from the therapeutic effects of cannabis.

The first of these effects is countering the nausea and excessive vomiting that affect cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. It also relieves cancer patients of the same neuropathic pain that we mentioned before that MS patients suffer from, which is the pain that is caused by nerve damage. Lately, several studies have suggested that the intake of cannabinoids like CBD halts the growth of, and sometimes kills, some types of cancer cells. Over and above that, it causes pain relief for cancer patients and allows them to sleep with more ease.

Epilepsy

This is perhaps one of the earliest known medical uses for cannabis. There has evidence of its use to treat epilepsies in some ancient civilizations like in China and Persia. The validity of these uses has been proven by many modern studies and anecdotes.

One that caught attention was the study published last May in the New England Journal of Medicine. In the study, 120 children and teenagers (aged from two to 18) suffering from Dravet syndrome (a serious form of epilepsy that is developed during childhood and is incurable) had the effect of liquid CBD tested on them. They were split into two teams in order to test the CBD’s effect against that of a placebo. The result in the CBD-treated group was an average of six seizures per month, down from their regular 12. The placebo-treated group, on the other hand, only came down from 15 to 14 per month. After the 14 weeks of the study, three of the participants even ceased getting seizures altogether. The problem laid in its side effects during the study like nausea, sleepiness and liver difficulties. However, they were thought to be caused by the interaction of the CBD with the other medications the participants were taking, and not because of the substance itself.

There is an abundance of anecdotal evidence on the effectiveness of CBD with epilepsy. One of the most famous cases was the story of Charlotte from Colorado back that gained massive media recognition back in 2013. The girl (seven years old at the time) had been suffering from Dravet syndrome since she was two. After five years of desperate attempts with conventional medication to no avail, they had failed to stop their daughter’s deadly seizures. They tried CBD-concentrated cannabis oil and after a few weeks the difference was noticeable. They girl’s seizures start falling in frequency until they almost came to a complete halt, with only minimal recurrences every once in a while.

Anxiety

Among the diseases CBD has also proven a long time ago to be a source of relief for is anxiety. There are 40 million Americans from 18 years old and above who suffer from anxiety. While many people still take psychological illness lightly, the repercussions of severe anxiety can be huge. CBD has the ability to counteract many forms of anxiety, from panic disorders to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among other things. The reason many patients of these disorders have switched to CBD for treatment is that it does not have half the side effects of pharmaceutical alternatives like Prozac or Zoloft.

For example, what selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) like Prozac and Zoloft do is stop the brain from reabsorbing the serotonin, which leaves higher levels of serotonin available. This means that more serotonin can be sent by brain signals to the rest of the body, enhancing the person’s mood. CBD has been proven in a number of studies to have the capability of stimulating serotonin receptors in the brain, thus boosting the frequency of serotonin signals. It was also found to help the hippocampus (a part of the brain that was discovered to be smaller among sufferers of anxiety and depression) in the regeneration of neurons. That regeneration helps heal the deficiency causing the anxiety and therefore gradually can cure the disorder.

An endless amount of group studies were made on anxiety patients whose results verify what the lab studies show us. Also, there are infinite testimonials from anxiety patients who were able to successfully treat themselves for different symptoms of anxiety like insomnia, reduced appetite, etc., using CBD extracts.

Heart Disease

CBD was discovered to be the cannabis component responsible for limiting the damage of cells and for the neuroprotective and cardiovascular effects cannabis has on heart patients. It was also found to have preventive benefits if preemptively taken before a heart attack strikes. These benefits included the reduction of cell death, and inhibiting oxidative stress, fibrosis, and inflammation among other things. It also helped in the preservation of the left ventricle.

Heart strokes are known to cause brain damage upon their occurrence that in turn causes excitotoxicity, inflammation and oxidative stress. Post-stroke treatment with CBD has proven capable of remedying these damages.

Is that All?

As a matter of fact, that is not even close. The medicinal uses for CBD are numerous and listing them can go indefinitely. However, these are the most important among the list. For a complete list of available CBD products today.

Reference links:

https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/cam/hp/cannabis-pdq#section/_5

https://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatments-and-side-effects/complementary-and-alternative-medicine/marijuana-and-cancer.html

https://www.theverge.com/2017/5/24/15684556/cannabis-marijuana-cannabidiol-health-epilepsy-dravet-seizure-epidiolex-drugs

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/08/07/health/charlotte-child-medical-marijuana/index.html

https://www.cannabisreports.com/cannabis-studies/cannabidiol-induces-rapid-acting-antidepressant-like-effects-and-enhances-cortical-5-htglutamate-neurotransmission-role-of-5-ht1a-receptors

http://www.medicalmarijuanainc.com/cardiovascular-disease-medical-marijuana-research/

CBD products: Cannabidiol products currently available in the market

July 24, 2017 By John Reed 1 Comment

What is Cannabidiol?

Plants have a metabolism like we do. In their cells they produce several substances that either help them grow or protect them from different predators, such as animals, insects, bacteria etc. These substances are called metabolites. Some metabolites like carbohydrates, lipids and proteins, that help the plants grow are called primary metabolites. Others, which derive from the primary ones, like alkaloids, phenolics, essential oils etc. are chemicals that help the plants defend themselves and are called secondary metabolites. For example, the β-carotene that gives carrots their orange color or the anthocyanins that give tomatoes and flowers their different colors are typical secondary metabolites. Secondary metabolites are usually produced in specific plant cells either in tiny quantities making it very difficult for us to isolate them or in bigger ones.

Canabidiol (CBD, see fig. 1) is a secondary metabolite of both hemp and Marijuana plants that is mainly found in the seeds, stalk and flowers of the plant and comprises up to 40% of the plant’s extract thus, it is very easy for us to isolate it in big quantities from the plants. Moreover, CBD can also be synthesized and produced in the laboratory. However, the synthetic CBD is a highly regulated substance and its possession is allowed only for specific purposes. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), CBD has a great potential as a new drug and there are many scientific studies and companies that perform research on it in order to develop new therapies for several diseases. Thus, CBD cannot be considered as a dietary supplement, although there are still available products indicating CBD as dietary supplement.

Figure 1: Cannabidiol chemical structure¹.

Figure 1: Cannabidiol chemical structure1.

How CBD works in your body?

There is no evidence for the moment showing that CBD produces euphoria or intoxication^2-4. CBD, like other cannabinoids also have their effect mainly by interacting with specific receptors of our brain and body cells. Two well-known receptors that CBD interacts with are: the CB1 receptor, found on neurons and glial cells in various parts of the brain, and the CB2 receptor, found mainly in the body’s immune system cells. However, CBD has very low affinity for both of these receptors and when it binds at them it produces little to no effect. CBD also has affinity at certain Transient receptor potential (TRP) cation channels, which are implicated in many diseases. There is also growing evidence that CBD acts on other brain signaling systems, and that these actions may be important contributors to its therapeutic effects⁵. For instance, CBD blocks the activity of several receptors, such as TRPV1, TRPV2, TRPV3, TRPV4 and TRPA1 which are highly active in pain states in many diseases. CBD is also an antagonist of the TRPM8 receptor, which heavily implicated in allodynia, a really intense kind of pain. Finally, CBD also targets key neural signaling receptors such as 5-HT1a and 5-HT3a, which are useful targets for diseases such as epilepsy and numerous anxiety disorders. Unfortunately, although there are many studies and several clinical trials that show the potential therapeutic effects of CBD, there is no evidence for its mechanism of action.

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Medicinal properties of CBD

Since the FDA has recognized CBD as a new potential drug, there are many scientific studies and clinical trials going on in order new therapies to be discovered for several diseases. Until now it has been shown that CBD has the following medicinal properties:

Anti-cancer/anti-proliferating
Treatment and/or prevention of skin diseases like psoriasis
Analgesic (pain treatment/relief)
Anti-convulsive (anti-epileptic)
Anti-bacterial
Blood-sugar balancing
Stress/anxiety relief
Anti-emetic
Anti-inflammatory
Gastrointestinal relief
Neuroprotective
non-psychoactive

Safety of CBD

As mentioned above Cannabidiol is a drug. Thus, it is possibly safe when taken orally or sprayed under the tongue appropriately in adults, while following the appropriate dose. Cannabidiol doses of up to 300 mg daily have been taken by mouth safely for up to 6 months. Higher doses of 1200-1500 mg daily have been taken by mouth safely for up to 4 weeks. Cannabidiol sprays that are applied under the tongue have been used in doses of 2.5 mg for up to 2 weeks⁸.

Comparing to other drugs used for the treatment of similar diseases as the ones mentioned above, CBD has less severe side effects. The most commonly reported ones include dry mouth, low blood pressure, light headedness, and drowsiness, tiredness, diarrhea and changes of appetite or weight.

Special precautions & warnings:

Pregnancy and breast-feeding: As there is not enough reliable information about the safety of cannabidiol consumption during pregnancy or breast feeding, better stay on the safe side and avoid its use.

Parkinson’s disease: According to some studies taking high doses of cannabidiol might make muscle movement and tremors worse in people with Parkinson’s disease.

CBD products

There are numerous CBD products in the market, starting from whole plant extracts but also in the form of oils, balms, pastes, tinctures, salves, gels, creams and lotions, patches, capsules, transdermal formulations, even chewing gum. However, not all of them are safe or approved from the FDA. Thus, be careful of what you order and for which condition you would like to use it. In case you are interested to treat a disease, better contact your doctor and get advice from him before purchasing a CBD product.

Hemp oil

It is mostly produced from pressed hemp seeds and is commonly used for wellness and body care products as it contains high amounts of terpenes, vitamins, fatty acids, trace minerals, and other natural cannabinoid compounds.

Creams and lotions

There is a lot of research going on for the development of cannabidiol based creams and lotions. These products are intended to be used not only for wellness purposes, but also for the treatment of several skin diseases like psoriasis.

Balms

These products are usually made from cannabidiol extracted from the stems of hemp plants. Companies claim that this is another way of getting your daily CBD and other important cannabinoids good for health.

Water soluble CBD

CBD brothers⁹ have created a water soluble, drinkable CBD in order to ensure that the active ingredients are quickly and fully absorbed. This product contains healthy levels of CBD, CBC, CBN and CBG together with Curcumin, Echinacea, Vitamin E, Myrcene, Caryophyllene, Pinene, Limonene, Linalool. They claim that this product can deliver vital enhancement.

Capsules and tablets

There are so many different CBD capsules in the market. Most of them are non-psychoactive proposed for taking your daily CBD, but there are also others intended for the treatment of chronic pain, cancer, anxiety, diabetes, epilepsy, sleep disorders, arthritis and several other medical conditions or even for quitting smoking! For your safety, it is important to follow the recommended dose and buy them from a verified seller. Interestingly, there are CBD capsules in the market also for your little friends (cats or dogs). They are supposed to benefit your pet’s body by enhancing its mobility, joints, gastrointestinal tract, neurology as well as its general demeanor and comfort.

Chewing gum

AXIM Biotech, a U.S. based company and world leader in cannabinoid research, has developed a form of chewing gum from hemp, to treat pain and spasticity associated with multiple sclerosis (MS). The name of the drug is CanChew Gum ™ and contains 5 mg of cannabidiol (CBD) and 5 mg of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

Patches

They are an easy, controllable and accurate way of CBD delivery. It is better adhere them to any veinous part of the skin for discreet, all day (or night) usage.

Transdermal formulations

Most of the products are intended for the pain management and some of them are an accompaniment to the patches. However, there are also claims that they may treat nausea and emesis, convulsions, muscle spasms, inflammation, depression, and cachexia.

Cannabidiol has a huge potential for the treatment of numerous diseases, such as cancer, chronic pain, stress, epilepsy, diabetes, psoriasis etc. or it could just be used for enhancing your general health or mood. However, as it is considered a drug, you should always take care of consuming a proper dose and use it cautiously.

References

https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/cannabidiol#section=Top
Martin-Santos et al. Acute effects of a single, oral dose of d9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) administration in healthy volunteers. Curr Pharm Des. 2012;18(32):4966-79
Fusar-Poli et al. Distinct Effects of Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabidiol on Neural Activation During Emotional Processing. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2009;66(1):95-105
Winton-Brown et al. Modulation of Auditory and Visual Processing by Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabidiol: an fMRI Study. 2011 Jun;36(7):1340-8
Borgelt et al. The pharmacologic and clinical effects of medical cannabis. Pharmacotherapy 33 (2): 195–209 (2013)
https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/natural/1439.html#Safety
Iffland K and Grotenhermen F Safety and Side Effects of Cannabidiol – A review of clinical data and relevant animal studies European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) 2016
https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/natural/1439.html#Safety
http://cbdbrothers.com/

What is CO2 oil?

July 23, 2017 By John Reed 1 Comment

CBD is extracted from cannabis or hemp in numerous ways, and every way guarantees a different level of purity. Oil is one of the purest forms with which one can consume CBD. Yet again, there are many ways to extract the CBD component from hemp plant and turn it into oil, thus creating what we call CBD oil. One of the most-used methods for this is “supercritical fluid extraction”. The idea behind this method is that it exploits the abnormal activities that occur when a gas is compressed past its critical point. That allows it to act in both gas-like and liquid-like manners at the same time. It is then used in separating one component or substance (what we call the extractant) from its original body (the matrix). In our case, the extractant is CBD, whereas the matrix is the hemp plant.
CO2 is commonly-used in this process for one main reason, and this is the fact that its critical point is only around 90 °F. This temperature is not so hot as to affect or nullify the terpenes and cannabinoids in the plant, most of which are very delicate in nature. After CO2 is compressed that way, the fluid that emerges, because of its lack of almost any surface tension, is able to penetrate its way through the trichomes (the crystal-like parts scattered on the surface of a hemp plant which carry most of the plant’s resin) of the hemp plant. As it does so, it dissolves the oils that come its way which carry CBD in its purest form.
Supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) changes in terms of its dissolving power when subjected to varying levels of pressure, allowing further separation of different components and thus higher levels of purity. After this whole process is over, and the wanted extractant is obtained, the pressure is decreased so as to allow the CO2 to evaporate and be recycled. What we end up with is oil that comprises CBD at a very high level of concentration and purity which facilitates digestion and the assimilation of the CBD inside the body.
A critical advantage of this method is that from all the cannabinoids present inside the plant, THC (the psychoactive element in cannabis) is the least soluble when treated with scCO2. When researchers in the Netherlands at the University of Leiden experimented with the supercritical fluid extraction of THC, they were not able to top a 50% concentration of the substance. Bear in mind that this was with a THC-rich strain of cannabis (higher levels were achieved elsewhere but that required ultimate levels of THC in the matrix plant itself). When done with strains that are low on THC and more CBD-rich, the levels of THC were close to non-existent.

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