More and more studies are finding that cannabis or marijuana use may not actually be as bad as initially assumed. In fact, many studies have outlined the immense health benefits that weed has to those who use it. CBD or cannabidiol is one such compound found in marijuana that is causing excitement within the community of users as well as in scientific cycles.
What is Cannabidiol (CBD)?
You may already know about THC; the ingredient in Marijuana that is responsible for the high you get when you use it. THC has been the subject of many a study and scientists have outlaid the kind of benefits one can get from this compound. Lately, however, the scientific community has come abuzz with new studies showing another compound (cannabidiol) found in cannabis that has tremendous benefits to users as well. One of the main reasons for this excitement is that, unlike THC, CBD does not seem to present a lot of the associated side effects.
Cannabidiol or CBD is one of the many compounds (over 60) found in Marijuana. CBD belongs to the molecule class commonly referred to as cannabinoids. Out of the over 60 compounds present in cannabis, THC and CBD present in the highest concentrations and are thus the most recognized as well as studied. But unlike THC, CBD is a non-psychoactive. Which means that it does not give you a high. It is more medicinal that it is a psychoactive compound.
Recreational Marijuana has a higher concentration of THC because most people are chasing the high. Recently, however, expert cannabis breeders have been using selective breeding techniques to produce strands of Marijuana that has less THC and more CBD. Of course, this is not as popular with recreational users; it is however, highly valuable as far as medicinal benefits are concerned.
Medicinal benefits of CBD
Studies show that CBD may have the following medicinal benefits:
– It can be an antiemetic: This means that it reduces nausea and abates vomiting
– It may be an anticonvulsant: This means that it has the capability to suppress seizure activity
– It could be an antipsychotic: This means that it has properties which help combat psychosis disorders
– It is an anti-inflammatory: This means that it has properties which combat inflammatory disorders
– It is an antioxidant: This means that it has properties which combat neurodegenerative disorders
– It may prove to be an anti-tumoral/anti-cancer: It has the capability to combat tumor and cancer cells
– It has shown promise as an anxiolytic or anti-depressant: It has properties that may help combat anxiety as well as depression disorders
Although many of these benefits have only been evidenced in animal trial, pharmaceutical companies are hopeful that clinical trials on the effects CBD has on human beings will show that the compound is a wonderful addition in the fight against schizophrenia and a few strains of epilepsy.
Positive aspects of cannabidiol
As mentioned earlier, CBD has become popular due to the fact that it does not have the same side effects commonly associated with THC and Marijuana in general. In fact, CBD has been known to counteract the crippling anxiety and paranoia that is often associated with Marijuana use. CBD has properties that neutralize these feelings.
Another positive effect associated with CBD is that you cannot overdose on it. Since this is a non-toxic compound, people who use it do not run the risk of overdosing on it. Additionally, CBD can be ingested in more ways than just smoking it. Keen users have an array of alternatives that include: several topical treatment options, ingesting it directly or as a pill and as tinctures that can be rubbed in and around the skin or affected areas.
As the process to legalize Marijuana sweeps through the world, more and more medical programs will begin to realize, and act on the medical benefits that CBD as a compound has for patients in general. With reported breakthroughs being made in studies that link the positive effects of CBD on severe epilepsy and seizure, it is only logical that more and more time and resources will be spent on finding out just how exactly this compound can be medically beneficial to humans. Considering it does not cause the same high as THC, CBD is poised to be a popular and widely accepted compound with medicinal value in the near future.
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