Treating Colitis & Crohn’s with CBD – Benefits & Effects

There are bits of findings that suggest that CBD, a major compound from medical cannabis could be effective in the treatment of the symptoms of both Crohn’s and colitis. The reason is that these diseases occur in the digestive tract. According to several studies, CBD is able to react with the receptors that are in the stomach, brain and in the large and small intestines once it is ingested.

Once these receptors (CB-1, serotonin, and CB-2) interact with CBD, they are able to stimulate the body to prevent certain occurrences like nausea, and stomach acid irregularities. According to a 2014 study that was published in Med Pub, the use of CBD in treating Crohn’s as well as colitis disease works as efficiently as the therapy session or even better. This in turn helps the patients get relief from the symptoms and inflammatory effects of the disease.

Colitis is an inflammatory bowel disease that results in long lasting inflammations and sores (ulcers) in the digestive track. This condition affects the innermost lining of the large intestine and rectum. The symptoms of colitis often develop over time rather than suddenly and could even lead to life-threatening complications.

The symptoms of colitis typically vary from person to person, depending on the level of severity and where it occurs. Some of the common signs and symptoms of colitis may include bloody diarrhea, abdominal pain and cramping, rectal pain, rectal bleeding, urgency to defecate, inability to defecate despite the urgency, weight loss, fatigue as well as chills/fevers.

The exact cause of colitis is not yet known, even though it is believed that diet and stress play an important role in aggravating the condition. The risk factors of colitis include being less than 30 years (although it could also develop after 60), being a white and having close family or relative with the condition. Colitis could result in possible complications such as severe bleeding, severe dehydration, hole in the colon, bone loss, liver disease, increased risk of blood clot in veins and arteries, as well as increased risk of colon cancer, etc.

The symptoms of colitis are quite similar to those of Crohn’s disease. However, the major difference is that Crohn’s affect the entire digestive tract, whereas, colitis affects only the colon. That said, the treatment of both colitis and Crohn’s disease typically involves either drug therapy or surgery.

There are bits of findings that suggest that CBD, a major compound from medical cannabis could be effective in the treatment of the symptoms of both Crohn’s and colitis. The reason is that these diseases occur in the digestive tract. According to several studies, CBD is able to react with the receptors that are in the stomach, brain and in the large and small intestines once it is ingested. It should be noted that once these receptors (CB-1, serotonin, and CB-2) interact with CBD, they are able to stimulate the body to prevent certain occurrences like nausea, and stomach acid irregularities. According to a 2014 study that was published in Med Pub, the use of CBD in treating Crohn’s as well as colitis disease works as efficiently as the therapy session or even better. This in turn helps the patients get relief from the symptoms and inflammatory effects of the disease.

A 2011 report on Plos One, revealed that CBD could be therapeutic in treating inflammatory bowel disease. This investigation has gone a long way to buttress the claim that CBD could be effective in treating colitis. It is worthy to note that the objective of this study was to monitor the effects of CBD on intestinal biopsies from actual patients with ulcerative colitis, as well as intestinal segments of mice with IBS-like symptoms.

The results indicated that CBD was able to counteract the inflammatory environment in both instances. This also made the researchers to claim that the natural compound presents a new therapeutic strategy in treating various forms of IBS, including ulcerative colitis and crohn’s disease.

The findings from another study that was carried in 2009 and published in the Journal of Molecular Medicine also revealed that CBD could be protective against rat models of colitis. This study, which focused on investigating laboratory models of colitis in rats concluded that CBD exerted pharmacological effects as well as mechanisms that are potentially beneficial for the inflamed gut.

It is apparent that very few studies have been conducted on CBD’s effectiveness in the treatment of colitis and crohn’s disease. Therefore, there is a need for more investigations on the subject.

Sources:

Medicine Net
Mayo Clinic

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