Following the legalization of cannabis in Canada in October, a team of scientists from the McGill University Health Center (MUHC) and McGill University in Montreal delivered encouraging news for chronic pain patients by evaluating the effective dose of cannabidiol marijuana plant extract (CBD) for safe pain relief without the psychoactive effects of THC.

 

The results of their study were published in the journal PAIN (The Journal of the International Association for the Study of Pain).

 

Cannabis Indica and Sativa are the two most important and best-known cannabis strains, as they produce the pharmacological agents tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD). The team of dr. Gabriella Gobbi showed that CBD does not act like THC on the CB1 cannabinoid receptors, but by binding to certain receptors that are involved in symptoms such as anxiety (serotonin 5-HT1A) and pain (vanilloid TRPV1). The researchers were able to find out the exact dosage of CBD that has analgesic and anxiolytic properties without the risk of mental impairment usually caused by THC. However, this dose varies with a few individual factors such as age, weight, physical condition, and some other things. Therefore, it is always advisable to discuss a CBD treatment with a medical purpose always with a doctor, and also to adjust the dosage of CBD preparations with him.

 

Studies on chronic pain have found that low doses of CBD administered regularly over a period of at least seven days relieve both pain and anxiety, two symptoms often associated with neuropathic or chronic disease. The lead author of the study, dr. Gobbi, a researcher in the Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience (BRaIN) program of the MUHC Research Institute, sees this as progress for the evidence-based use of cannabis in medicine, with CBD being a safe alternative to THC and opioids in chronic pain such as back pain, Sciatica, diabetes, cancer and post-traumatic disorders. Since it is almost impossible to take an overdose that could become a hazard or a health hazard, it can be considered extremely safe and tolerable.

 

The results illustrate the mechanism of action of CBD and show that it can be used as a drug without the side effects that THC-containing drugs can cause. Despite the widespread use of CBD, there are few robust clinical trials on its medicinal properties. Dr. Gobbi notes that while there are some data showing that CBD provides pain relief to humans, more meaningful clinical trials are needed to ensure the correct form and dose of CBD treatment for many diseases.