Cannabidiol (CBD) and the endocannabinoid system
If you have made it this far, it is most likely because you are looking for information about CBD and its health benefits. To understand all this, it is essential to understand how CBD and the other phytocannabinoids (including THC) work and interact with our bodies.
CBD and THC are the two best-known among the more than 100 cannabinoids found in the Cannabis sativa plant (or Marijuana plant). It is well known that Cannabis, particularly medical Cannabis and Cannabis light, produce multiple positive effects on health: anxiolytic, analgesic and pain-relieving, anti-inflammatory, energizing, antioxidant effects.
Why? How is this possible? The beneficial effects induced by phytocannabinoids, particularly CBD, are due to the interaction of these plant molecules with one of the most important neurotransmission systems involved in regulating the functions of our bodies: the Endocannabinoid System. Now, the question is: what is the Endocannabinoid System, how does it work, and what are its functions?
The Endocannabinoid System is one of the most important biological communication and regulatory systems in our bodies.
The endocannabinoid system: A little history...
The discovery of the Endocannabinoid System is very recent and stems from the medical and scientific community’s interest in the effects and therapeutic properties of Cannabis sativa, a plant also known as Indian hemp, Marijuana, Ganja, or “weed”.
Cannabis has been used by humans for millennia and, although the first evidence dates its use back to 4,000 BC, it was only in the second half of the 20th century that researchers began to shed light on its active compounds.
In 1964, Israeli researchers Gaoni and Mechoulam succeeded in isolating and synthesizing delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC or, more commonly, THC), the most potent of the numerous active compounds found in Cannabis. Between the late 1980s and the early 1990s, it was discovered that cannabinoids, including Δ9-THC, act by binding to specific proteins expressed on cell membranes: type 1 (CB1) and type 2 (CB2) cannabinoid receptors.
But why do our cells express cannabinoid receptors? The answer came in the late 1990s thanks to the discovery by several researchers that our bodies produce cannabinoids: endocannabinoids, or endogenous cannabinoids. In 1992, the first endocannabinoid was isolated: N-arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA), better known as anandamide (from the Sanskrit ananda, inner serenity). Three years later, in 1995, Mechoulam and his collaborators identified a second endogenous cannabinoid, 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG). Both endocannabinoids interact with CB1 and CB2 receptors, the same receptors with which the exogenous cannabinoids found in Cannabis interact.
The endocannabinoid system: what is it?
The endocannabinoid system consists of: cannabinoid receptors, endocannabinoids, and enzymes involved in their production and breakdown.
Cannabinoid receptors are found in the membranes of various types of cells. In addition to being expressed in peripheral tissues (for example, the liver and muscles), the CB1 receptor is now considered the most abundant receptor expressed in the mammalian brain. CB1 receptors are distributed throughout various areas of the brain (such as the hippocampus, cortex, amygdala, hypothalamic nuclei, and cerebellum) that regulate and control our learning abilities, memory, emotions, and movement.
CB2 receptors were initially identified as peripheral receptors of the immune system. Subsequently, it was demonstrated that these receptors are also expressed in the brain, both on nerve cells (neurons) and on immune cells in the brain.
Endocannabinoids (including not only anandamide and 2-AG, but also PEA and OEA) are molecules produced and released by our bodies “on demand”, in response to stimuli (for example, painful, emotional, or inflammatory stimuli) originating from the external environment. Once produced and released, endocannabinoids activate CB receptors to transmit signals to cells, coordinate an appropriate response, and return the body to its “dynamic equilibrium”. Then, once they have performed their function, the endocannabinoids are broken down.
The third element of the Endocannabinoid System consists of the enzymes that synthesize and break down endocannabinoids once they have carried out their role as “messengers”.
What are the functions of the endocannabinoid system?
The endocannabinoid system plays a crucial role in modulating the body’s ability to self-regulate in order to maintain the right balance, or homeostasis. The term homeostasis refers to the ability, common to all living beings, to maintain a constant internal environment despite changes in the external environment. This “dynamic equilibrium” is essential for all our biological processes to function properly and enable us to achieve or maintain an optimal state of health.
It is when imbalances or “malfunctions” occur that the body is no longer able to resolve that diseases are more likely to develop. For this reason, homeostasis is a necessary and indispensable condition for the well-being and survival of the body.
Therefore, all parts of our body (from individual cells to organs and tissues) must be able to communicate with one another in order to function properly and perform their roles at their best, so that the body as a whole remains in complete balance.
In particular, given the distribution of its components throughout all the cells that make up our bodies, the Endocannabinoid System helps regulate a great many physiological processes. Neuroprotection is a fundamental function: when our nervous system is overstimulated, endocannabinoids regulate the release of other signaling molecules (such as neurotransmitters or neuropeptides) in order to control the activity of nerve cells and prevent their damage. In addition, the Endocannabinoid System regulates neurological development and our ability to learn and remember through its ability to modify or create new connections between nerve cells.
In addition, it can modulate immune system activity, exert anti-inflammatory effects, regulate mood and sleep, stimulate hunger, and influence the perception of pain
Cannabinoids and the endocannabinoid system
The 100% natural chemical compounds found in hemp, including CBD, are able to interact with CB1 and CB2 receptors just as endogenous cannabinoids do.
Therefore, understanding how the endocannabinoid system works helps us understand how and why CBD and its “relatives” have such high therapeutic potential.
And this brings us to the point. CBD is able to interact positively with our Endocannabinoid System. How? Through a “regulatory” or “moderating” function. In practice, CBD is able to regulate and optimize processes already underway in the body.
When “imbalances”, dysfunctions, or disturbances occur, CBD could act promptly and help restore the lost balance, supporting and strengthening the main actor in recovering this balance, namely the Endocannabinoid System. All of this occurs naturally and without the risk of side effects! In fact, unlike THC, CBD has no psychotropic effects on the brain.
But why does THC, unlike CBD, have psychotropic effects? THC is able to rapidly penetrate the brain without being blocked by the blood-brain barrier. Therefore, it is able to directly activate CB1 receptors, causing effects in people who take it such as: fatigue, increased appetite (the well-known “munchies”), feelings of euphoria, anxiety, altered vision and smell, and altered perception of space and time.
THC, therefore, should be taken only and exclusively under strict medical supervision because of its typical psychotropic effects, which can lead to changes in behavior and perception.
CBD: why is it recommended?
Unlike THC, CBD is a recommended cannabinoid and, above all, safe to take. The main reason is that, although they are both cannabinoids, CBD and THC interact with the Endocannabinoid System in different ways. While THC directly activates cannabinoid receptors, CBD mainly enhances the activity of the endocannabinoids that our bodies produce on their own, only when and where they are released. This is why CBD has no psychoactive effects (it does not make you “high”) and is a 100% legal substance. Thanks to its scientifically studied and demonstrated characteristics and properties, it is a highly useful natural remedy for maintaining or restoring one’s “dynamic equilibrium”.
Today, thanks to modern technologies, it is possible to isolate cannabinoids from Cannabis and Eusphera Nutraceuticals has an in-house Research & Development department constantly committed to improving the quality of its products, with the aim of offering you the possibility of taking CBD safely, for example through CBD oil, with no trace of THC.
Thanks to our daily collaboration with a team of biologists, doctors, chemists, and pharmacists, we can provide you with completely natural, organic, Made in Italy, certified products according to Italian and European standards and always laboratory-tested.
For any questions or further clarification, contact us without delay and our team of experts will provide you with all the information you need.
