From Dr Mercola’s article Medicinal Benefits of Cannabis and Cannabidiol (CBD)

The medical benefits of CBD (cannabidiol) are becoming increasingly well recognized. According to Project CBD, at least 50 conditions are believed to be improved by CBD, including pain, seizures, muscle spasms, nausea associated with chemotherapy, digestive disorders such as colitis and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), degenerative neurological disorders such as dystonia, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, mood disorders, anxiety, PTSD and high blood pressure.

CBD is one of some 104 compounds classified as cannabinoids in cannabis plants, with as many as seven or eight more recently discovered compounds that may be considered cannabinoids.

It is not a surprise CBD has so many benefits since there is actually an endocannabinoid system in the human body and other mammals. It is part of our physiology. Cannabinoid receptors, which recognize and interact with CBD, are found in the human brain, lungs, liver, kidneys and immune system.

There are myriad medical uses attributed to CBD, and the list keeps growing. Here are some uses that have recently been scientifically documented.

* Allergic asthma — “CBD treatment decreased the inflammatory and remodeling processes in the model of allergic asthma,” according to the European Journal of Pharmacology.

* Anxiety and sleep — “Cannabidiol may hold benefit for anxiety-related disorders,” The Permanente Journal
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) — “Cannabis in ASD patients appears to be [a] well tolerated, safe and effective option to relieve symptoms associated with ASD,” Scientific Reports.

*Blood pressure — “This data shows that acute administration of CBD reduces resting BP and the BP increase to stress in humans,” JCI Insight.

*Cancer pain, nausea and lack of appetite — “The National Cancer Institute (NCI) currently recognizes medicinal C. sativa as an effective treatment for providing relief in a number of symptoms associated with cancer, including pain, loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting, and anxiety,” BioMed Research International.

*Cancer/tumors — “Cannabidiol (CBD), one of the compounds present in the marijuana plant, has antitumor properties,” Cancer Letters.

*Diabetes — “These results suggest that the neuroprotective effects of CBD in middle-aged diabetic rats … are related to a reduction in neuroinflammation,” Neurotoxicity Research.

*Epilepsy — “CBD is a well-tolerated and effective antiseizure agent and illustrates a potential disease-modifying effect of CBD on reducing both seizure burden and associated comorbidities well after the onset of symptomatic seizures,” Epilepsia.

*Inflammation — “CBD that exerts prolonged immunosuppression … might be used in chronic inflammation, the terpenoids … might thus be used to relieve acute inflammation,” Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research.

*Irritable bowel diseases — “Clinical trials suggest that there may be a therapeutic role for cannabinoid therapy in the treatment of IBD,” Current Gastroenterology Reports.

*Multiple Sclerosis — “As cannabis legalization has impacted the variety of cannabis products available, there appears to be growing numbers … using cannabis … reporting use of highly efficacious products with minimal side-effects,” Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders.

*Neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases — “CBD has been found to possess antioxidant activity in many studies, thus suggesting a possible role in the prevention of both neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases,” BioMed Research International.

*Ovarian function/female reproductive system — Impacts “the female reproductive system where it affects folliculogenesis, oocyte maturation and ovarian endocrine secretion,” Journal of Ovarian Research.

*PTSD and nightmares — “Administration of oral CBD in addition to routine psychiatric care was associated with PTSD symptom reduction … CBD also appeared to offer relief in a subset of patients who reported frequent nightmares as a symptom of their PTSD,” Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine.

*Pain, migraine, detoxification from opioids — “There is accumulating evidence for various therapeutic benefits of cannabis/cannabinoids, especially in the treatment of pain, which may also apply to the treatment of migraine and headache. There is also supporting evidence that cannabis may assist in opioid detoxification and weaning, thus making it a potential weapon in battling the opioid epidemic,” Headache

 

*Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases — “CBD may be effective in the “treatment of five syndromes, currently labeled recalcitrant to therapeutic success, and wherein improved pharmacological intervention is required: intractable epilepsy, brain tumors, Parkinson’s disease (PD), Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and traumatic brain injury,” Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience.

*Pediatric seizures — “The efficacy and safety profile of CBDV suggest it may have therapeutic value for early life seizures,” Neuropharmacology

Why Is There Such Resistance to Cannabis and CBD?

Despite CBD’s many benefits, it remains in a legal no man’s land, says the Brookings Institution:

“Over the past 22 years, 33 states have legalized cannabis for medical purposes, and over the past six years, 10 states have legalized cannabis for adult use. Every one of those programs is illegal under federal law, with no exceptions [if federal authorities choose to prosecute] …

Even CBD products produced by state-legal, medical or adult-use cannabis programs are illegal products under federal law, both within states and across state lines … Under the 2018 Farm Bill, there will be more broadly available, legal, CBD products; however, this does not mean that all CBD products are legal moving forward.”

Many trace the original vilification of cannabis which gained it Schedule I status to its association with hippies and opposition to the Vietnam War 50 years ago. Not only were “pot” arrests a way of muzzling protestors, the “out of the box” thinking that marijuana fostered fed young people’s strong questioning of authority, fueling the counter culture and war opposition.

But, as I noted earlier, the medical use of CBD oil, especially as a treatment for pain, also represents a significant threat to the sale of opioids which have so enriched Big Pharma in the last decade.

The cannabis plant also poses economic threats to the lumber, energy, food and other industries; its fiber products can be used to make paper, biofuel, building materials, food products and oil, clothing, shoes and even jewelry.

In fact, according to the Hemp Business Journal, industrial hemp “can be used in an estimated 50,000 different products across a wide spectrum of industries: from textiles to food products, building materials to bioplastics, nutraceuticals to nanomaterials, ethanol to animal bedding. Still, if the use of CBD were more widely adopted by Americans for medical treatments, we would probably all be healthier.

 

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