Is CBD the pain relieving alternative to traditional pharmaceutical medicine?

CBD is a fascinating medicine that has been used for centuries to treat a diversity of ailments. It has historical links to Ancient Egyptian medicine, Chinese herbal teas made for Emperors and most recently, used by Queen Elizabeth, who took a popular medication in the Victorian times called laudanum to gain relief from her monthly cycle. Laudanum is an alcoholic herbal mixture containing 10% opium that was extremely popular for pain relief and inducing sleep.

Throughout history, in many countries of the world, CBD has commonly been used to treat pain. Anecdotal reports have shown CBD to decrease not only temporary discomfort, but chronic pain, including arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and back pain. Some studies have shown CBD to help relieve pain caused by cancer. According to a recent study examining regular CBD users, 62% reported using CBD to treat a medical condition, particularly in managing chronic pain, arthritis, and joint pain as well as anxiety and depression. A recent Gallop Poll showed 14% of Americans to use CBD, and the number one reason was for pain relief.

Thanks to herbs and plants, many of our pharmacological treatments for pain have been developed and implemented. Several of the most common pain relievers have come from plants, including the plant willow bark from Salix spp., which led to the development of aspirin. Another common pain-relieving plant is the opium poppy (Papaver somniferum). Discovering the structure of the opium poppy led to the scientific term prototypic narcotic analgesic morphine, or what is more commonly known as morphine. This was the first alkaloid discovered, leading to further research and development of understanding the endorphin and the enkephalin systems in the human body.

Just like the willow bark and the opium poppy led to the discovery of aspirin and morphine, cannabis led to the original development of THC (or Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol) which became popular in 1964. This chemical compound is the psychoactive ingredient leading to a “high” most people associate with cannabis. The ingredient CBD, on the other hand, is the non-psychoactive extraction of the cannabis plant used for pain relief and to help to induce sleep and reduce inflammation. It disrupts the pain receptors in the body and releases serotonin and dopamine as neurotransmitters, which ease the pain and discomfort, even if pharmaceutical painkillers do not affect.

Read more about CBD for pain relief in the full article at https://marketnewsfirst.com/2020/04/30/is-cbd-the-pain-relieving-alternative-to-traditional-pharmaceutical-medicine/

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