Cannabigerol (CBG) is starting to make its way into the cannabinoid market, which is currently dominated by the huge influx of CBD based products. Here in this post though we’ll address some of the basics of CBG, and why you’ve probably not heard much about it yet.

What Is CBG?

The reason why CBG isn’t so widely talked about is due to how low the levels are in the cannabis plant. It’s classed as a minor cannabinoid and it’s only present in trace amounts or less than 1% of the volume.

First the cannabis plant produces CBGA as defined is the start-point, or the precursor to phytocannabinoids found within the Cannabis sativa plant in its acid form. This precursor is converted by the plant into the acid forms of the three main cannabinoids to aid during the flowering cycle. These three known ones are cannabidiolic acid (CBDA), Tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA) and cannabichromenic acid (CBCA). CBDA and THCA compose of the majority of the cannabinoids created from CBGA.

After being exposed to UV light ( or sunlight) or heat, the acid part of the cannabinoid is removed to form CBD, THC and CBC. These are probably names you’ve heard – as they are the most active forms.

CBG is formed when CBGA doesn’t convert to CBDA, CBCA, or THCA – however this is very rare and as such only trace amounts of CBGA are available in the plant come normal harvest time. This is why you haven’t heard much about it – it’s expensive and hard to get in large quantities.

CBG & What It Does Inside You

While CBD has a more indirect approach to interacting with the ECS, CBG has a more direct approach. It functions in similar, but also different ways to CBD. Unlike CBD it binds to cannabinoid receptors directly in the body, however due to it’s “inactive” nature it acts more as a regulatory or therapeutic component in the body.

(This also means that CBG is completely non-psychoactive just like CBD!)

Simply put, instead of causing something in the body to happen, CBG can slow down functions normally proceeding too fast. It binds to receptors and stops other bodily endocannabinoids from doing the same. Because of this function of slowing things down, it’s seen quite lot of success in scientific research at being potential treatments for a host of illnesses.

Talk is Cheap – What About The Research?

Appetite stimulant

Using rat studies, research in 2016 found that CBG was able to more than double the food intake of rats compared to the placebo control group. The meal sizes were not increased, but the time between feeds became shorter. This result was produced with zero psychoactive effects.

Antibacterial properties

Cannabinoids such as CBC, CBD and CBG have been shown to possess antibacterial properties, especially against problematic bacteria such as Gram-negative bacteria. Some of the members of this family of bacteria include MRSA, the superbug that is quickly becoming resistant to multiple antibiotic treatments.

The research found that the cannabinoids are effective at preventing the bacteria from creating ‘biofilms’. Biofilms put simply is a sticky, sugary nest that surrounds the cells, trapping molecules that come into contact with it. This biofilm contains enzymes which can then inactivate or destroy the molecules – this makes bacteria like MRSA extremely hard to fight with medication and precisely why cannabinoids show such promise!

When paired up with other antibiotics, the paper explains that the cannabinoids enhanced the activity even against drug-resistant strains of MRSA!

Glaucoma + intraocular pressure

One of the major discoveries when it comes to CBG is it’s effect on intraocular pressure. Using cats, scientists found that CBG produced a reduction in tension between 4 to 7 mm Hg with no psychoactive effect either awake or asleep. The real exciting part of this research is the potential for therapy with the entourage effect of the full cannabinoid spectrum.

References

• Brierley, D.I., Samuels, J., Duncan, M. et al. (2016) Cannabigerol is a novel, well-tolerated appetite stimulant in pre-satiated rats. Psychopharmacology, 233, 3603–3613.
• Maya A. Farha, Omar M. El-Halfawy, Robert T. Gale, Craig R. MacNair, Lindsey A. Carfrae, Xiong Zhang, Nicholas G. Jentsch, Jakob Magolan, and Eric D. Brown. (2020) Uncovering the Hidden Antibiotic Potential of Cannabis. ACS Infectious Diseases. 6(3) 338–346.
• Colasanti, B K. (2009) A Comparison of the Ocular and Central Effects of Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabigerol. Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics. 6(4) 259-269.

When looking for something to help with the sheer bodily stress caused by chemotherapy, cannabinoids have been favoured by many due to their unique properties of pain-relief, stress reduction and appetite stimulation. Below we’ll talk about some of the research around CBG and what it means.

CBG For Appetite Stimulation And Slowing Weight Loss

Muscle wasting, anorexia and general disruption to the metabolism are all common side effects of chemotherapy. In fact, the actual dosing of chemotherapy is a fine line between removing more of the tumor, and compromising the quality of life for the patient. No point curing the cancer if the patient can’t eat or walk and wastes away.

As such, there are treatments for chemotherapy patients to help stimulate appetite and reduce weight loss. However, recent research has found that the cannabinoid CBG could provide really beneficial effects to counteract the weight loss associated with chemo.

CBG has previously had research suggesting it’s appetite stimulating properties. However, in 2019 further research in the field looked at whether this increase in appetite was enough to offset muscle wastage and weight loss in rats suffering from metabolism dysregulation caused by the commonly used chemotherapy drug, cisplatin.

The results of the study found that the rats that were given CBG had an increased food intake, and additionally the weight loss caused from the cisplatin treatment was 2.6% in 72 hours compared to 6.3% weight loss in 72 hours in the placebo group.

CBG & Antitumor Effects

Cannabinoids like CBG could soon have a recognised role not just in the palliative care side of cancer treatment, but soon as a conjoined treatment method with existing chemotherapies due to the discovery of its ability to slow down the replication of cancer cells, and sometimes even remove them.

Research on the antitumor potential of CBG has been shown in research before, such as back in 1996 when this report came out claiming CBG was able to inhibit the growth of melanoma cells on the skin of mice.

In 2014 a paper published in Carcinogenesis claimed that CBG promoted apoptosis and slowed cell growth in colorectal cancer cells. Apoptosis is a term used to mean programmed cell death and it’s the bodies way of destroying cells safely. The study talks about how CBG may be more effective than other cannabinoids in the treatment of colorectal cancer due to the fact CBG doesn’t bind to CB2 receptors, which most cannabinoids do. CB2 receptors have been linked to actually progressing colorectal cancer, and CBG’s different mechanism in the body could be the key.

Further studies in 2018 found that it’s not just CBG that has an effect on colorectal cancers, but also CBGA. The study found that THCA-rich compounds were fairly effective at removing colon cancer cells, however when combined with CBGA the cocktail showed significantly improved removal effect. The paper noted that while CBG and THC showed cytotoxicity to cancer cells, the acidic forms THCA and CBGA showed less interaction with healthy colon cells, indicating a potentially more direct treatment to cancer cells with less damage to surrounding healthy tissue.

This study further highlights the beneficial entourage effect of cannabinoids that can help amplify effects on the body with complementary interactions between cannabinoids.

Conclusions

The research on CBG is fresh and exciting but also in its infancy, as such we always recommend that if you are curious about taking any cannabinoid formulation, you always consult your physician beforehand as drug-drug interactions are important.

Regardless, we’re excited to hear more research on the subject as further progress on uncovering the power of cannabinoids and the entourage effect could have the potential to help millions one day.

References

• Brierley, D.I., Samuels, J., Duncan, M. et al. (2016). Cannabigerol is a novel, well-tolerated appetite stimulant in pre-satiated rats. Psychopharmacology 233, 3603–3613.
• Brierley, D.I., Harman, J.R., Giallourou, N., Leishman, E., Roashan, A.E., Mellows, B.A., Bradshaw, H.B., Swann, J.R., Patel, K., Whalley, B.J. and Williams, C.M. (2019). Chemotherapy‐induced cachexia dysregulates hypothalamic and systemic lipoamines and is attenuated by cannabigerol. Journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle, 10(4), 844-859.
• Baek, S., Du Han, S., Yook, C.N. et al. (1996). Synthesis and antitumor activity of cannabigerol. Arch. Pharm. Res. 19, 228–230. 
• Borrelli, F., Pagano, E., Romano, B., Panzera, S., Maiello, F., Coppola, D., De Petrocellis, L., Buono, L., Orlando, P. and Izzo, A.A. (2014). Colon carcinogenesis is inhibited by the TRPM8 antagonist cannabigerol, a Cannabis-derived non-psychotropic cannabinoid. Carcinogenesis, 35(12), 2787-2797.
• Nallathambi, R., Mazuz, M., Namdar, D., Shik, M., Namintzer, D., Vinayaka, A. C., Ion, A., Faigenboim, A., Nasser, A., Laish, I., Konikoff, F. M., & Koltai, H. (2018). Identification of Synergistic Interaction Between Cannabis-Derived Compounds for Cytotoxic Activity in Colorectal Cancer Cell Lines and Colon Polyps That Induces Apoptosis-Related Cell Death and Distinct Gene Expression. Cannabis and cannabinoid research, 3(1), 120–135.

The Background On CBG

CBG is a product of the molecule CBGA – the precursor for all the major cannabinoids in the cannabis plant. CBGA is the startpoint, and is responsible for converting into the cannabinoids you’ve probably heard of: Tetrahydrocannabinolic acid – THCA, Cannabidiolic acid – CBDA and Cannabichromenic acid – CBCA (okay maybe not that one – it’s lesser known). These are the acid variants that are less chemically active than the compounds you find in your CBD oils and tinctures.

From this point, through exposure to UV light (we know this generally as sunlight) or heat, the ‘A’ part of these compounds is removed forming the active cannabinoids THC, CBD and CBC, and this is all part of the flowering process of the plant.

The reason why CBG isn’t so talked about is because after CBGA has been used to create all the dominant cannabinoids, there is little CBGA left to simply convert down into CBG, as as such the overall concentration of CBG in the cannabinoid profile of the plant is very low – less than 1%! As such it’s hard to come by in large amounts and more expensive.

Here’s A Rundown On Glaucoma

Glaucoma is a condition characterised by damage to the optic nerve – the connection between the eye and the brain. Glaucoma doesn’t occur overnight, it’s a gradual development over the years, and it’s usually caused by fluid build-up in the eye. The resulting pressure overtime can damage the optic nerve and if it isn’t treated it can lead to vision loss.

There are multiple type of glaucoma – the most common is the one that develops slowly over many years, and it’s mainly due to the drainage channels in the eye gradually clogging up over time. This kind of glaucoma is commonly found during opticians visits.

There are other forms such as secondary glaucoma caused by eye inflammation and childhood glaucoma. One other kind that is faster to develop, acute angle closure glaucoma, is caused by a sudden block in the drainage systems which can result in an increase in pressure very quickly. These symptoms include:

• Intense eye pain
• Nausea and vomiting
• Red eye
• Headaches
• Tenderness around the eyes
• Seeing rings around lights
• Blurred vision

CBD & Intraocular Pressure

Back in 1990 research conducted by Brenda Colasanti aimed to look at the effect of applying cannabinoids CBG and Δ9-THC in drops to the eyes of cats. The study found that intraocular pressure was reduced significantly. Further studies using rats found that administration of Δ⁹-THC was associated with psychoactive effects in the brain, however CBG produced no such effects! (CBG is non-psychoactive just like CBD). The study also concluded that application of CBD produced a two-to three-fold increase in the aqueous outflow facility (basically this means the fluid can move around easier in the eye – potentially relieving the pressure).

While the paper is older, cannabinoids have for many years been used to help relieve symptoms associated with glaucoma. Just another benefit to the exciting compound CBG, a compound we’ll surely hear more about in the future with the surge of research on cannabinoids!

Like with everything we talk about here at Nordic Botanics, if you are considering using cannabinoids to treat glaucoma symptoms, or if you believe you are suffering with glaucoma, always consult your physician before to assess any interactions with medications.

References

COLASANTI, B.K., 1990. A comparison of the ocular and central effects of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabigerol. Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics, 6(4), pp.259-269.

IBD is a blanket term for inflammation found in the digestive tracts, it includes Ulcerative Colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease primarily. UC affects the large intestine while Crohn’s can affect any part of the digestive system.

So Where Does CBG Come Into This?

Cannabigerol (CBG), one of the cannabinoids found in the cannabis plant and found within most whole extract blends, has been shown to have quite the impressive résumé. From showing signs of helping glaucoma, to cytotoxicity, to cancerous cells and even to appetite stimulation for sufferers of metabolism disorders, CBG seems to be every bit as dextrous in its action than it’s more known cousin CBD.

Reduced inflammation

Another interesting benefit was found through research in 2013 when scientists investigated the effect of CBG in mice suffering from colitis. CBG was shown to reduce the colon weight/length ratio, essentially meaning that the inflammation in the colon was being calmed down. Further assessment found that it reduced the overall autoimmune response markers and reactive oxygen species formation in the intestinal cells.

IBD conditions such as colitis are primarily autoimmune disorders, which means that its the body itself that damages the intestines, through mistakenly recognising intestinal cells as foreign invaders and creating antibodies against the bodies own intestine cells.

Immune-System regulation

This research would suggest that CBG could possess immune-system regulation effects similar to CBD and other cannabinoids. And due to its non-psychoactive nature, it could potentially be considered for future treatments for IBD patients.

Obviously the research is still in its infancy, we don’t always trust mouse models for concrete evidence, but the research is certainly exciting, and with the conversation around cannabinoids becoming more commonplace, expect more research to follow on from this in the near future!

We’re definitely keeping our hopes up!

If you’re suffering from IBD, or are simply interested in trying CBG or any other cannabinoid extract we always suggest that you first consult a physician with knowledge of cannabinoids to ensure there are no interactions with existing conditions.

References

Borrelli, F., Fasolino, I., Romano, B., Capasso, R., Maiello, F., Coppola, D., Orlando, P., Battista, G., Pagano, E., Di Marzo, V., & Izzo, A. A. (2013). Beneficial effect of the non-psychotropic plant cannabinoid cannabigerol on experimental inflammatory bowel disease. Biochemical pharmacology, 85(9), 1306–1316.

Despite normally making up less than 1% of the total cannabinoid profile of whole extracts, CBG has always shown significant effects on various diseases such as glaucoma, appetite loss from chemotherapy, IBD and even bacterial infections.

Unfortunately the research has been a little bit slower than its cousin CBD, mainly due to the the low quantity found in a harvest – resulting in higher costs and difficulty to obtain. These factors have affected the popularity of CBG, and allowed CBD to take the majority of the spotlight.

So we’re going to hype it up a bit – because we love an underdog here at Nordic Botanics!

Huntington’s Disease

Huntington’s disease is a condition that stops part of the brain working properly over time, its a genetic disorder that usually gets progressively worse over time. The symptoms starts at roughly 30-50 years of age, and usually becomes fatal after a period of 20 years.

Huntington’s disease is an inherited disease, which means you’re usually at risk of developing huntington’s if one or both of your parents has or had it. It’s a devastating illness that can require full-time nursing during the later years of the illness. Symptoms of the disease include:

• Difficulty concentrating and memory lapse
• Depression
• Stumbling & clumsiness
• Involuntary jerking or fidgety movements of the limbs
• Mood swings & personality changes
• Problems swallowing, speaking or breathing
• Difficulty moving

Treatments for Huntington’s are mainly for helping with the symptoms and slowing the degeneration rather than a specific cure as of yet. The complicated nature of the disease being genetic creates a large hurdle science has yet to be able to clear.

CBG & Huntington’s Disease

Cannabinoids such as CBD have routinely been investigated as treatments for chronic illnesses such as Huntington’s for years, however in 2015 researchers conducted an investigation using CBG to assess the effect. Using a mice study, CBG was shown to actually possess neuroprotective qualities, such as recovery of deteriorated rotarod performance. The study even showed that CBG partially normalised expression of certain genes associated with being negatively affected by Huntington’s!

Slowing Down Degeneration and restoring function

What this research means is that CBG was shown to essentially slow down the degeneration of neurological systems and potentially restore some function lost. This opens up potential future avenues in research, looking into combination therapies or even for sole CBG treatments.

The research is exciting, even if it’s only using mice models for now, it just goes to show that even now in the pharmaceutical heavy world, natural extracts could still have real impactful therapeutic potential.

If you or someone you know suffers from Huntington’s disease and wishes to try CBG, CBD or any whole cannabinoid extract, we recommend you always consult with a physician with knowledge of cannabinoids first to assess whether it would be best for you or whether it would interact with existing medications.

References

Valdeolivas, S., Navarrete, C., Cantarero, I., Bellido, M. L., Muñoz, E., & Sagredo, O. (2015). Neuroprotective properties of cannabigerol in Huntington’s disease: studies in R6/2 mice and 3-nitropropionate-lesioned mice. Neurotherapeutics : the journal of the American Society for Experimental NeuroTherapeutics, 12(1), 185–199.

To add to the ever growing list of ailments cannabinoids have been shown to positively affect, in this blog we’ll talk about how a less-talked about cannabinoid, cannabigerol (CBG), has been shown to have just as many beneficial uses as the more popular CBD. It seems the more research that gets done the more fascinating things we find out! (We’re not complaining).

Suffering from an overactive bladder may not sound like the worst problem to have, but having to dictate your daily life around finding the next restroom day after day can be exhausting, and can put a big strain on your social life. It’s estimated that between 3 and 6 million people in the UK suffer from bladder incontinence, with the WHO predicting that it affects up to 200 million worldwide. Treatments to rectify the underlying problem range from prescription medication to minor surgery. If only there was another way … wink.

Let’s Get Into The Bones Of It

The study we’re talking about is one carried out way back in 2015, where researchers tested multiple cannabinoids found within the cannabis plant (except THC and cannabichromene). These cannabinoids were first used in mice with overactive bladders.

The Most Effective Cannabinoid (for bladder control)

The results were impressive – CBG was shown to be the most effective of all cannabinoids tested. The mechanisms weren’t fully discovered (this takes years of testing). However they suggested that CBG functions outside of cannabinoid receptors, and instead functions by helping the body and bladder regulate itself!

(Our other blogs outline some of the other amazing ways cannabinoids help the body help itself, read about them all here)

Now we don’t like to put a lot of weight into mice studies – but thankfully the study didn’t end there. After the trials in mice the study moved on to observing the effect the cannabinoids had on human bladder. They found that again CBG seemed to show a reduction in acetylcholine-induced bladder contractions. This research follows on from studies in 2013 that found that cannabis extracts were able to lower contractions by 19%.

While nothing groundbreaking, it’s always good to have research that can potentially find uses from natural extracts. Especially when its as biologically harmless as CBG. No toxicity. No psychoactivity. Only efficacy!

It’s also good to have more proof that it’s not just the CBD in our whole extract blend that’s doing people so much good, every cannabinoid and terpene contributes in its own way to the entourage effect, gently restoring the bodies natural function. If you suffer from any form of bladder dysfunction and are interested in trying CBD / CBG, we highly recommend first consulting with a physician knowledgeable of cannabinoids to get advice around potential interactions with medication.

References

• Pagano, E., Montanaro, V., di Girolamo, A., Pistone, A., Altieri, V., Zjawiony, J.K., Izzo, A.A. and Capasso, R., 2015. Effect of non-psychotropic plant-derived cannabinoids on bladder contractility: focus on cannabigerol. Natural Product Communications, 10(6), p.1934578X1501000653.
• Bakali, E. and Tincello, D.G., 2013. Cannabinoids and the urinary bladder. Gynecol. Obstet, 3(163), pp.2161-0932.
• https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/urinary-incontinence/treatment/

Ongoing research has suggested that there is a drug that can reduce the chance of death by up to a third in patients placed on ventilator support  due to the COVID-19 virus. The drug is actually a very common, cheap anti-inflammatory steroid called dexamethasone. 

We’re talking about this because this news becomes very important when we look at why the drug helps with survival rates – and how the biological mechanisms involved relate closely to mechanisms of health benefits found with CBD intake! 

The Science Behind The News – In The Least Boring Way Possible!

COVID-19 has the potential to be a killer in the more vulnerable, with one of the major causes of death in patients being a massive spike in inflammatory chemicals called cytokines in the blood. 

This is also known by healthcare professionals as a ‘Cytokine Storm’. This basically causes the immune system to attack the body, causing horrible events such as organ shut down, sepsis and death. 

It’s essentially your body’s panic mode – when confronted with a new, highly infectious virus that targets essential organs such as the lungs, it goes all guns firing. It’s nothing particularly new, however it’s becoming a common symptom of new viral infections.

These raised levels of inflammatory molecules can also cause extreme lung and throat inflammation as well as a fluid build-up in the lungs.

These problems reduce the lungs ability to function – leading to people needing oxygen or being placed on ventilators to survive.

Here’s Where Dexamethasone Comes In

News from the BBC has stated that Oxford University has recently trialled around 2,000 COVID -19 patients with dexamethasone treatment, with a control group of 4,000 who didn’t receive treatment.

The team found that the risk of death was reduced in patients who were on ventilators from 40% down to 28%. Patients using oxygen had their risk of death reduced from 25% to 20%.

Talking percentages is a little abstract – so boiled down it’s saving one extra life for every 20-25 treated with this cheap drug. 

Fantastic news – it’s being hailed as a massive breakthrough for the UK! But we’re going to talk a little more about inflammation responses, and which bodily function is responsible for them. 

CBD & Inflammation

The Endocannabinoid System in our bodies functions as the control board for most of our body’s silent processes. We’re talking about the:

• Nervous system – serotonin, dopamine 
• Hormone system – cortisol, melatonin
• Immune system – cytokine response 

We’ve got a whole post on general inflammation here, but we’re talking about a slightly different form of inflammation here. It’s the same premise – the body notices something is damaged and sends signals to the immune system to send inflammatory chemicals down to the affected area to stop more things going wrong.

Studies have found that while the mechanisms aren’t fully understood yet, evidence suggests that CBD treatment lowers the levels of some inflammatory cytokines in mice, and in other studies have been found to increase the levels of other cytokines known to reduce inflammation.

While mice studies aren’t the best evidence when talking about human problems – and should be taken with a pinch of salt – it’s helpful to have a small insight.

These same ‘inflammatory’ cytokines are some of the same kinds that crop up in other autoimmune illnesses  (rheumatoid arthritis as an example). They aren’t bad by themselves – actually they’re essential! The problem arises when they are overproduced.

In the end the only thing that successfully fights off viral infections is your body. You need a strong immune response to fight infection, but not an overly aggressive one that ends up causing more harm than good. 

CBD in the body functions as a homeostatic agent, in english it means it helps keep your body’s mechanisms balanced – not too weak and not too forceful. When you’re dealing with any form of infection, it’s always going to be better if your body is functioning from a balanced state. 

Just Food For Thought

We’re not saying that CBD will be effective in treatment for COVID-19 – research on the virus and dexamethasone is still in its early stages and we’re in no position to comment on medical advice. Always work with a doctor with regards to taking any supplement!

But with the increasing talk of inflammation responses and just how dangerous they can be to your health, it’s always worth talking about the benefits of nature’s best kept secret, and how its benefits can sometimes extend further than just balancing hormones.

It’s horrible stuff to witness to a loved one or to experience yourself, and chemotherapy can just as taxing.

Everyone Has Heard A “Miracle Cure Story” By Now

You hear it all the time on the “news” – someone with terminal cancer takes CBD or cannabis oil and suddenly recovers completely from near death! There’s a lot of this type of anecdotal evidence surrounding CBD, and while it’s great that some people are claiming to receive these huge benefits from CBD (and we should celebrate anyone’s recovery to good health!), we’re all about that science around here and some semblance of scientific proof.

Because of the residual stigma about CBD and other cannabinoids, research with real meaningful large study samples is still in the process of ramping up, and we’ve only got animal or cell studies for now.

CBD Has Been Shown To Possess Anti-Tumorigenic Activity

Studies such as this one have shown that CBD was shown to prevent an invasion of human cervical cancer cells and human lung cancer cells. The researchers suggested the suspected mechanism in the paper, called TIMP-1, but if you want to read about that in the link you’re welcome to (it’s a bit heavy on the science). While this was a study looking at cells rather than a study using human patients, the method used is a Matrigel invasion assay, which is a fancy experiment that can closely mimic the environments found within a living system.

Other studies have linked CBD to interacting with other receptors in different cancers, with respect to how they metastasize (spread to other places in the body). There’s a review of the different mechanisms found by research if you’re interested in further information here.

In 2016, researchers in Israel looked at the effect of THC & CBD treatment for Neuroblastoma, one of the most common solid cancers in children. Results found that CBD was able to slow down growth of neuroblastoma cells more so than THC, while also reducing the invasiveness of the tumour cells. CBD was also shown to induce apoptosis in the neuroblastoma cells (apoptosis is a scientific term for causing the cells to die in a controlled safe way). In other words, it’s looking good for further research into this area (so watch this space!).

The ‘Entourage Effect’

In late 2018, a paper published named “Appraising the “entourage effect”: Antitumor action of a pure cannabinoid versus a botanical drug preparation in preclinical models of breast cancer” compared the antitumour effect between a pure THC extract and what they called a “botanical drug preparation” (BDP) which basically is a crude extract that containing cannabinoids and terpenes alongside THC. They tested both these compounds on multiple types of breast cancer (ER+/PR+, HER2+ & triple negative breast cancer).

While both oils were shown to possess anti-tumoral activity, they found that the impure BDP showed a much more potent effect that just pure THC for all three types of cancer! The paper goes on to mention the importance of the “entourage effect” for the improved effectiveness of a artisanal cannabis extract with multiple cannabinoids, however stating that this effect is much more complex than we know yet, and we have a long ways to go to fully understand how far and wide this effect goes.

Sidenote: Since inception, Nordic Botanics have used a Broad Spectrum extract: An arbitrary marketing term created by consensus amongst the Cannabis industry. It means CBD + “As many Other Legal Cannabinoids” (such as CBG) but minus the THC (or CBN – a psychoactive cannabinoid common in Cannabis Hash, also illegal in the UK and many other countries).

Other benefits & The Mechanism Behind Them …

CBD has effects on your whole endocannabinoid system (ECS) – it’s a whole body messenger system that can control the normal functioning of your body! It’s proven to interact with the CB2 receptors in your ECS to help regulate the body in numerous ways that can improve quality of life if you’re undergoing chemotherapy and suffering from harsh side effects (such as break-through pain).

Here’s some ways it can help below:

• Helps improve your sleep: We talk about how CBD can help improve your sleep here, but for a quick rundown. CBD can help increase melatonin levels at night. Melatonin is regarded as the sleepy hormone, it prepares your body for shutting down. If you’re struggling with getting to sleep at night due to restlessness, CBD can help you chill out and improve the general quality of your sleep too!
• Can help relieve anxiety and stress: Leading on from the point before, CBD has been proven to lower cortisol levels in humans. Cortisol is known as the “stress hormone” and it’s what keeps your body awake at night if you can’t turn off, and is raised when your feeling anxious or stressed. Excess cortisol causes the breakdown of muscle tissue and can cause further weight loss as well as multiple other problems such as raised blood pressure.
• CBD can relieve pain & inflammation: CBD and its entourage effect has been shown to reduce inflammation & pain in the body, without the side effects or psychoactive qualities of opioid painkillers, and avoids any gut-related problems associated with Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs. CBD has been shown to inhibit pain at the source rather than interfering with your brains pain reception and can also help reduce any swelling or pain in the joints.

A Disclaimer

While some drugs exist at the moment using cannabinoid extracts, CBD is yet to be licensed or approved for treatment of any illnesses. The benefits of CBD have been shown in some research but it’s still being fully understood. If you are looking to supplement with CBD extracts for assistance of side effects from chemotherapy or cancer always consult your doctor beforehand. We’re just exploring the current state of research here.

Research at the University of Nottingham in the UK has been focused on observing the effect of CBD treatment on blood pressure. Previously the university experimented using rat models. However, a paper was released in 2017 and presented to the 29th annual International Cannabinoid Research Society (ICRS) this year revealing using a human study, researchers found that CBD treatment could in fact reduce blood pressure, even under conditions of raised heart rate.

The results sound exciting, so let’s break them down a bit – nine healthy male volunteers were given a 600 mg dose of CBD in a randomized, placebo-controlled double-blind crossover study. The blood pressure and heart rate of the volunteers was monitored at rest and after exercise.

The study found that there was a resting systolic blood pressure reduction of 6 mmHg and resting stroke volume reduction of 8 ml before and after induced stress. It’s worth noting that CBD treatment was also associated with a slight increase in heart rate (10 bpm increase).

How Keeping Your Blood Pressure Down Can Keep You Standing Up

Blood pressure is a tricky thing, we all know the things that are meant to help keep it low, and the guilty pleasures we love that can hike it up! Simply put, your blood pressure consists of your systolic and your diastolic blood pressure. We’ll break down some terms below:

• Systolic pressure: This is the highest pressure in the blood vessels, and is caused by the contraction of the heart.
• Diastolic pressure: This is the lowest pressure in blood vessels in between heartbeats when the muscles in the heart relax.
• Stroke volume: The cardiac output from the left ventricle in the heart, or simply the amount of blood pumped in one contraction. Together with the heart rate the stroke volume determines the output of blood per minute.

The ‘normal’ adult blood pressure is considered to be around 90/60 mmHg and 120/80 mmHg – and high blood pressure is caused by a number of lifestyle choices and health complications. Just because you go to the gym regularly and your bodies good doesn’t necessarily mean your hearts keeping up. Common causes of high blood pressure are smoking, stress, high intake of cholesterol or trans-fats, found in meat (which the average gym-goer consumes a lot of!) and also in a wide variety of junk foods. Having a high blood pressure is known as hypertension, and it comes with some serious complications …

Hypertension, as defined by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is a blood pressure of 140/90 mmHg. It doesn’t just affect older adults either, over 2.1 million people under 45 in the UK alone were found to have a high blood pressure in 2015 and the Global Burden of Disease in 2015 report highlights it as the second biggest global risk factor for disease in the world, and the largest single known risk factor for cardiovascular diseases.

Cardiovascular diseases and high blood pressure can lead to risks of heart failure, coronary artery disease, stroke, chronic kidney disease and vascular dementia. A such, keeping a low blood pressure and a healthy heart ensures you can train harder for longer and live a more active fulfilled life.

While research on CBD is still in its early days, we’re not claiming any major benefits to CBD supplementation with regards to blood pressure and heart health, and if you choose to incorporate CBD into your daily regime we recommend you always consult with your physician beforehand.

References

• Forouzanfar, M.H., Alexander, L., Anderson, H.R., Bachman, V.F et al., (2015) Global, regional, and national comparative risk assessment of 79 behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risks or clusters of risks in 188 countries, 1990–2013: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013. The Lancet, 386(10010) 2287–2323. Available from https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0140673615001282.
• Jadoon, K.A., Tan, G.D. and O’Sullivan, S.E. (2017) A single dose of cannabidiol reduces blood pressure in healthy volunteers in a randomized crossover study. JCI insight, 2(12). Available from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28614793.

Flavonoids & Why You Haven’t Heard Much Of Them Until Now

You’ve no doubt heard about the effects of THC – And here on the blog we’ve talked in length about the pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory effects of the compound CBD and the other widespread health benefits of terpenes also found within the Cannabis plant , but there’s a truly massive number of other compounds that we and other scientists still don’t know much about. There’s also a lesser known family of compounds called flavonoids.

Flavonoids aren’t a new discovery & they are found in all kinds of plant matter such as vegetables and fruits – they’re responsible the colouring and also the anti-oxidant, immune system boosting benefits associated with them. In 1985 scientists found out that C. sativa make their own unique flavonoids, called Cannaflavin A & Cannaflavin B that were able to block the production of inflammatory molecules in cells – and were really good at it too!

The reason you haven’t heard of this wonder molecule is because of the fact that these cannaflavins exist within the plant in very low trace amounts, and no-one had any idea how the plant even made the things. Add on the common hurdles such as lack of general interest or funding and you’ve got your answer to why these molecules have gone under the radar.

How Advancements In Genetics Is Changing The Game

Using biochemistry and genomics the genes encoding for both Cannaflavin A and Cannaflavin B have been identified, and with it the blueprints on how to create them. The researchers are currently working alongside Anahit International Group, a Toronto-based company in order to develop and create a safe, natural alternative to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin & ibuprofen.

This new research is a step towards a new age in how we treat chronic pain and inflammation, without any of the side effects associated with NSAIDS or opioids. Unlike other painkillers, these flavonoids target the inflammation at the source rather than interrupting pain signals going to your brain, and avoids any of the nasty psycho-active effects that are associated with the development of dependence or addiction.

References

• Barrett, M.L., Gordon, D. and Evans, F.J. (1985) Isolation from cannabis sativa L. of cannflavin—a novel inhibitor of prostaglandin production. Biochemical Pharmacology, 34(11) 2019–2024. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0006295285903259.
• Rea, K.A., Casaretto, J.A., Al-Abdul-Wahid, M.S., Sukumaran, A., Geddes-McAlister, J., Rothstein, S.J. and Akhtar, T.A. (2019) Biosynthesis of cannflavins A and B from Cannabis sativa L. Phytochemistry, 164 162–171. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0031942218303819#bib69.