What is CBD?

The letters CBD have been talked about in plenty of places including news stories and social media. Many companies are saying that this CBD is the “next big thing!” It could also be a generational thing as well, but I’m guessing, like I was, some of those reading this don’t know what it is or why it’s being talked about. As you guessed it, there are already scientific opinions on this topic as well. Let’s dive in!

What is CBD? It is the acronym for the term cannabidiol, and, if you could not already tell, it is produced by the cannabis plant AKA weed/pot. However, this component of the cannabis plant is not like its partner THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) which is the principal psychoactive part of the plant (Devinsky, et al., 2015). Even though CBD does not create the psychoactive effects its other cousin does, it has become the center of attention for many companies and scientists around the world.

Cannabidiol has been recommended to treat complex medical conditions which lead to individuals to become incapacitated. Many disorders such as seizures have been improved by this compound of the cannabis plant. Naturally, many scientists have researched it for its therapeutic effects on their patients. One such condition that CBD has been used for is something called Dravet syndrome (Devinsky, et al., 2015). This syndrome affects children with treatment-resistant epilepsy. As demonstrated within their paper, Devinsky et al., (2015) stated, “CBD represents a new opportunity for the treatment of several brain disorders.” This would be due to the facilitation of neurogenesis AKA growth and development of nervous tissue (Campos, et al., 2015).

Proponents of CBD claim it can be used for pain, psoriasis, depression, nausea, anxiety, etc. However, most of these claims are not defined by scientific literature and are mainly supported by those who are benefiting from selling CBD products. That isn’t to say for sure that these products can’t provide a solution, but it is a place to say that science just hasn’t gotten us that far yet. Much of our research that has been done is with cells or lab animals, aside from the rare epileptic disorder studies that I’ve mentioned.

More than likely we will see more and more legislation that is pointed towards legalization of the CBD compound as we discover more uses for it, especially when it comes to medical use. However, a huge myth about the CBD compound is that you can “get high” from it because of comes from the cannabis plant. Not true. Remember, CBD does not give you the psychoactive ability like THC does.

Hopefully this has given some people a clarification as to what is being talked about in current news and social media. Some individuals are for this legalization and usage, other are not, which could be an entire article itself. However, that is for you to decide!

Resources

• Campos, A., Fogaca, M., Sonego, A., & Guimaraes, F. (2016). Cannabidiol, neuroprotection and neuropsychiatric disorders. Pharmacological Research, 1-9. DOI: 10.1016/j.phrs.2016.01.033

•Devinsky, O., Marsh, E., Friedman, D., Thiele, E., Laux, L., Sullivan, J., Miller, I., Flamini, R., Wilfong, A., Filloux, F., Wong, M., Tilton, N., Bruno, P., Bluvstein, J., Hedlund, J., Kamens, R., Maclean, J., Nangia, S., Singhal, N., Wilson, C., Patel, A., & Cilio, M. (2015). Cannabidiol in patients with treatment-resistant epilepsy: an open-label interventional trial. The Lancet Neurology, 1-10. DOI: 10.1016/S1474-4422(15)00379-8