The benefits of Cannabidiol (CBD) have been documented in pre-Christian times, particularly in India. Historical documents reveal vast benefits of this plant, translated from Sanskrit literature dating to around 1400 – 2000 BC, although its therapeutic use was described in greater depth in Ayurvedic Indian medicine. There are even records of such properties in ancient Greece, made by Claudius Galen (131 – 201 AD) and Pedanius Dioscorides (40-90 AD).
Currently, the plasticity of the cannabis genome, as well as the low efficacy of synthetic drugs to adequately treat diseases of higher morbidity, have led to CBD taking considerable attention again. However, it is vital that therapies using CBD are justified and evidence-based, measurable, and reproducible. So we leave below some research trials concerning this compound.
Potential Therapeutic Value of CBD
Among the numerous literature on the properties of medical marijuana, both in cell lines, studies in laboratories and clinical trials with human patients, different benefits are reported:
Apoptosis of tumor cells
Antiseptic
Asthma
Burns
Diabetes
Anti-inflammatory
Pain
Epilepsy
Anti seizure
Neuroprotector and Antioxidant
Antipsychotic
Muscle relaxant
Stimulates the appetite
Tumoral
The following lines will mention some of the most studied benefits today, both in laboratory research and in clinical trials.
Antiepileptic
Studies suggest that CBD has properties to reduce the severity and frequency of epileptic seizures in children resistant to drugs created for this purpose. The number of clinical trials conducted to elucidate the effectiveness of CBD is increasing, as more robust methodology and more patients are needed to know the real potential of this compound.
Neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects
These properties have been studied within models of diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, glutamate toxicity and neurodegeneration caused by alcohol. In double-blind clinical trials in patients with Parkinson’s disease, they report improvement in parameters known as the Quality-of-life scale (Quality-of-life scale).
On the other hand, the study conducted by Philpott, O Brien and McDougall in 2017, reports the following:
… » Treatment with CBD can be a beneficial therapy for the population of patients who experience neuropathic arthritis and are refractory to the first and second line analgesics that are currently used. Several cannabis compounds, including CBD, have been shown to be neuroprotective in other musculoskeletal disorders. In a preclinical model of multiple sclerosis, it was demonstrated that CBD improves clinical recovery and rotarodium scores in animals, correlating and indicating a neuroprotective effect. In addition, CBD has been involved in slowing the progression and promoting neuron survival in a preclinical model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. These studies, in addition to the results presented, highlight the potential usefulness of CBD as an analgesic and neuroprotective agent… »
Antitumor effect
There are multiple and varied reports of the antitumor effects of CBD in breast cancer cell cultures. These studies reveal cell viability, increased apoptosis (programmed cell death) specific to cancer cells, reduced tumor growth and inhibition of metastasis. Possibly due to the anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory properties of CBD.
Anti-anxiolytic effect
In laboratory protocols designed to simulate post-traumatic stress disorder, CBD is found to improve « extinction consolidation, » in other words, forgetting traumatic experiences/memories.
Anti Psychotic Effect
Increasing clinical evidence indicates that CBD acts as an antipsychotic, anxiolytic, in addition to exerting a neuroprotective action, increases proportionally with those investigations that report the protective effects of CBD against the consumption of psychotoxic substances, anxiogenic or deleterious effects such as THC, alcohol or synthetic narcotics. This suggests that CBD may help to cushion the symptoms of those individuals with early stages of psychosis and even comorbid cannabis use.