CBD and Autoimmune Disease Management

Autoimmune disorders manifest in many different forms from a mild case of psoriasis to the profound symptoms of full blown rheumatoid arthritis or lupus. Some autoimmune disorders attack one organ or system while others attack the whole body. Whatever the autoimmune dysfunction is, the basic situation is the same: the immune system incorrectly identifies healthy cells as foreign invaders, viruses or bacteria, and attacks them, causing damage and creating wide-ranging symptoms including pain, inflammation, fatigue, nausea, migraine, lack of appetite etc.

There is no single definitive cause of autoimmune disease, certainly genetics, diet, chronic stress and environmental contamination have been identified as stressors of the immune system’s ability to function.

The conventional treatment for autoimmune conditions is immunosuppressive drugs, which decrease the immune system’s responses. This immune system modulation stops the immune system from over responding but also weakens the system’s ability to fight off real threats.

Since the discovery of the ECS ( Endocannabinoid System) the system regulating intrinsic homeostasis, medical research has identified a condition which is a precursor to autoimmune dysfunction. This is CECD (Clinical Endocannabinoid Deficiency) where the body is not producing enough endocannabinoids to ensure balance in the body's organs and systems. This in turn leads to faulty messages to the immune system which then sends an unnecessary response expressed as autoimmune dysfunction.

Medical science has shown that CBD reduces inflammation and supports healthy production of endocannabinoids. This means that autoimmune sufferers will benefit in two distinct ways from CBD medication. To simplify the process, CBD is received by CB1 and CB2 receptors which are situated throughout the body, present in every organ and system, including the immune system. When CBD connects with these ECS receptors an immunosuppressant message is sent to overactive sites. The substitution of plant-based cannabinoids where endocannabinoids are scarce stimulates the anti-inflammatory response. This reaction can be very swift, relieving inflammatory pain very quickly.

Treating autoimmune conditions with CBD is not just a ‘quick fix’ solution for inflammatory pain, plant-based cannabinoids also stimulate the ECS to create more endocannabinoids itself to act on the intrinsic deficiencies. Also CBD inhibits the enzyme which breaks down endocannabinoids meaning there are more cannabinoids circulating in the body for a longer period of time. The ECS does not store endocannabinoids or cannabinoids; rather it utilizes them on demand, responding to the needs of the body. This is why plant-based cannabinoids like CBD are so effective and quick-acting.

Many sufferers of autoimmune disorders have found relief from symptoms and a substantial decline in flare-ups of symptoms by using CBD as part of their health regime. Extremely painful diseases like Multiple Sclerosis have been shown to be very responsive to cannabinoid therapy. Synergy member Leenie shared her journey from debilitating MS symptoms back to many years of active life here.

Leenie’s testimony to the healing power of cannabinoids reminds us of how many cannabinoids there are and how far we still have to go in terms of clinical research to discover all of the benefits.

Experimenting with different cannabinoid blends have proved effective for Leenie in large part because of her careful attention to dosage and effect.

There are so many constituents in every cannabis strain, not only cannabinoids but also terpenes and flavonoids which all elicit their own unique effects. Synergy Wellness products focus on full spectrum extracts so that the entourage effect of all the intrinsic constituents of the plant are present.

At Synergy we encourage patients with autoimmune conditions to experiment with cannabinoid medicine in different ratios of CBD/THC and other cannabinoids of note. Recently a member suffering from acute rheumatoid arthritis inflammation added Black Beauty THCV-rich tincture to her daily CBD tincture and salve, 5 drops had her pain eradicated and sustained by an extra 5 drop doses when the pain started to come back.

Anecdotal accounts of relief from eczema and psoriasis using CBD-rich salve alongside arthritic pain relief from salve application shows a clear connection between surface and internal inflammation from topical medication.

The perceived science of medicating autoimmune disorders vacillates between suppressing overactive immune response and encouraging healthy immune response. Cannabinoids work in the same way as endocannabinoids, redressing balance wherever it is needed. This is the underlying logic of why CBD treatments cause symptoms to abate and even be eradicated by correcting imbalances. Using CBD as a daily supplement has proved valuable in keeping autoimmune symptoms at bay.

Cannabis – A Solution to the Polypharmacy Problem

By Dan Reich

Polypharmacy – the situation that arises when someone is prescribed multiple prescription medications – has been a problem plaguing medicine since the emergence of Big Pharma. It is estimated that 36% of adults over 60 take five or more prescription medications. If you include over-the-counter remedies and supplements, the figure climbs to 67%. Many seniors have needed to be hospitalized due to adverse reactions to medications, and the more one takes at a time, the greater the chance that a problematic or even deadly reaction can occur. Much of the problem is caused by “prescribing cascades” in which side effects from one medication are addressed with another medication, such as laxatives being prescribed for constipation resulting from opioid use, or blood pressure medicine given to those who develop hypertension from taking NSAIDs such as Ibuprofen.

Sir Munir Pirmohamed, a British professor of molecular and clinical pharmacology, has suggested that pharmaceutical drugs are “poisoning” the elderly: “Those drugs are used at conventional doses and those doses have been tested in younger populations who had exclusion criteria for trials – so they have been tested in people who don’t have the multiple diseases. So when we use a drug at a dose which is licensed at the moment, we are often ‘poisoning’ the elderly because of the dosing that we are using.”

Compounding the problem is the fact that many patients are being treated by multiple practitioners, who don’t always share information and may or may not know what other medications the patient might be taking.

And it’s not just older people who are at risk…young people with conditions such as epilepsy and autism are frequently given drug after drug in the hopes that some combination will be what works, instead of trying them one at a time. It is common for physicians to prescribe a combination of antipsychotics, anti-seizure drugs, benzodiazepines, and antidepressants.

Cannabis – An effective alternative to multiple prescription medications

In recent years, research and changing attitudes have led to many practitioners using cannabis as an alternative to adding more pharmaceutical solutions. Cannabis is a very complex medicine, combining many cannabinoids and terpenes, which enables it to address a variety of symptoms, such as pain relief, insomnia, inflammation and anxiety. This versatility is key in its ability to address multiple symptoms without a drug needed to be prescribed for each.

Many studies are pointing the way towards cannabis replacing “drug cocktails” or drugs that are dangerously addictive or cause significant side effects. In an open-label study conducted in Israel, patients given medical cannabis for treatment-resistant chronic pain experienced improved pain and functional outcomes, and a 44% reduction in opioid use. And there are many stories of epileptic children taking multiple prescription drugs that are able to wean themselves off of them with cannabis and CBD oil.

The problem of polypharmacy is not going away any time soon. As our population ages, and people acquire more chronic conditions, it’s clear that another approach is needed. Cannabis appears poised to become an effective strategy in avoiding the pitfalls of polypharmacy and providing an improved quality of life.

Pets and CBD

By Billee Sharp

Our pets are important to us, they are family members and it's hard to see them suffering from injury, ill-health or the travails of old age. The good news is that CBD (Cannabinidiol) is a safe effective treatment for a wide range of conditions for both cats and dogs.

It is an amazing fact that all animals, including birds and even fish have an ECS ( Endocannabinoid System), and that paleo-biologists have identified ECS in creatures that lived millions of years ago.

The ECS was discovered only thirty years ago and no single researcher is responsible; rather the collective research of individuals working backwards; first discovering phytocannabinoids in cannabis, then endocannabinoids in rats and humans and then the cannabinoid receptors, CB1 & CB2 which revealed the whole ECS regulatory system. These discoveries have shown us the importance of the role that the ECS plays in maintaining balance between our organ systems. Naturally there are differences between the human ECS and the ECS of any other creature but the homeostatic function is identical. Fortunately in the last few years there have been a number of clinical trials to ascertain CBD’s efficacy in treating animals safely for a variety of conditions.

Possibly the most significant study pertaining to both cats and dogs is the 2019 clinical trial at the University of Florida, College of Veterinary Medicine which investigated the pharmacokinetic action of CBD in both species. Pharmacokinetics is the science of how compounds are processed in the body, this clinical trial was designed to test the safety of CBD medication for cats and dogs.

The trial used eight healthy dogs and eight healthy cats, the dogs were given one 2mg CBD chew daily for twelve weeks and the cats were given a daily dose of a 2mg CBD-infused fish oil capsule. The results expressed through blood tests showed that dogs’ uptake of CBD was greater but that cats’ retained CBD in blood plasma for longer. Interestingly, dogs were observed to have more cannabinoid receptors than cats, which might account for the greater uptake in the canine subjects. In March 2021, a Canadian study, on the safety and tolerability of CBD in escalating doses for cats, yielded positive results with oil-based tincture without significant side effects.

Dogs have received most of the recent attention from the research community with clinical trials focussed on osteoarthritis, epilepsy, pain reduction, improved functionality and atopic dermatitis. Across the board CBD showed improvement in symptoms and quality of life.

Colorado State University’s 2018 study on dogs suffering epileptic seizures showed 89% of participant dogs (who previously had two or more seizures a month) had significantly decreased seizures over the 6 week trial period.

Dogs with arthritis have been studied in three recent trials at Cornell University, Colorado State University and in Ontario at the Canopy Growth Center of Human and Animal Research, all three studies reported reduction of pain, improved mobility and better quality of life.

CBD topical cream was tested in a clinical trial in 2020 for the treatment of Atopic Dermatitis, a painful condition which affects many dogs with allergies. The dogs were treated with CBD -rich cream for seven weeks and the results showed significant decrease in symptoms. There is also significant anecdotal evidence to support arthritic relief from massaging CBD-infused salve into painful joints.

I have successfully treated our family’s cat and dog with oil-based CBD tincture for differing conditions. Our dog Akira developed arthritis when he was twelve years old, the Tramadol that our vet prescribed for him didn’t give him any relief and he had no appetite. When we started him on CBD tincture ( squirted into a piece of juicy chicken wrapped up in bacon!) he began to regain his mobility and his appetite within the hour he scrambled up and limped into the kitchen to his food and water. He lived another four years and took tincture every day with his food. We felt that giving him CBD accounted for his calm disposition as he gradually lost his sight and hearing, it was the only constant medication we gave him.

More recently, I treated one of our cats with CBD tincture. We had just moved house and Toltec, who is ten years old, let us know he wasn’t happy about it. Toltec is usually quite vocal but when we moved he started to yowl plaintively in our new neighbor’s shrubbery. I would go and coax him back over the fence but he kept doing it! I remembered that a girlfriend had treated her extremely timid cat successfully with CBD tincture and wondered if it might help with Toltec’s yowling. I started giving him two drops of Synergy’s Pet tincture in his daily teaspoon of wet food and then asked the family to report back to me if they heard the telltale yowling. So far, so good, the yowling has stopped and so have the visits to the shrubbery, Toltec is staying closer to home and isn’t exhibiting any other anti-social behavior, I’m now only giving him 2 drops a couple of times a week; my logic is that his anxious symptoms have abated with the help of the CBD tincture, so I want to make sure that he still gets a little support until he is really used to his new home.

Pet owners accounts of animals responding positively to CBD treatment for injuries, attest to quicker recovery from surgeries, strains, inflammation as well as relief from pain and anxious symptoms. I visited a friend this week whose chocolate labrador had just had a chemotherapy treatment, he was taking CBD tincture and was eating well and taking good walks.

It is such a comfort to be able to alleviate pain and distress in animals, and as the trials and the anecdotal record show, CBD tincture taken at correct dosages will benefit cats and dogs with a variety of ailments and issues. Keeping dated notes on dosage amounts and perceived results will guide the pet’s treatment plan. We recommend our CBD for Pets tincture for cats and dogs. At a 24:1 CBD: THC ratio the tincture delivers a high dose of CBD in each drop of infused olive oil. Two to three drops per 10 lbs of pet weight is a therapeutic dose, added to food for optimum absorption.

Sources

Early Medical Practices

Safety and Tolerability is Escalating Cannabinoid doses in Healthy Cats

Study evaluates adverse effects of CBD in dogs and cats