We speak of chronic pain when the pain occurs permanently or regularly in certain parts of the body. Many patients with chronic pain regularly use painkillers so that they can continue to live a normal daily life. The painkillers used are often synthetic, which is associated with major drawbacks. Everything is possible, from a possible dependence and habituation effect to a long list of side effects and high organ demands. These problems are not present with CBD, which is a natural substance.
An alternative to harmful synthetic painkillers are products whose effects can be associated with those of cannabidiols. Along with the psychoactive ingredient (THC), CBD is the most well-known ingredient in hemp and, as mentioned earlier, shows no mind-altering effects. Consumers use CBD oil for pain (especially recurring pain, such as headaches and back pain), but also for migraines and chronic pain. Cannabinoids are not foreign substances for the body because it produces them itself, even in the form of endocannabinoids.
The advantage of CBD products is that they are neither addictive nor habit forming. Often, CBD can be used to support conventional pain treatments so that the use of synthetic agents can be reduced or even discontinued. If you are on prescription medication, consult your doctor before supplementing this treatment with CBD.
THE DIFFERENT PRODUCTS BASED ON CBD
After hemp plants are harvested, CBD is extracted from the leaves and flowers of the female plant. The CO2 extraction, used at Hemproutine, is complex but gives an extremely high quality of extraction. Different products such as oils, pills or other dietary supplements can be made using this extract.
The extract recovered from the plant material is in the form of a crystal. However, due to its biochemical composition, CBD has been shown to be better absorbed by the body when accompanied by a carrier. CBD is lipophobic and hydrophobic, so the carrier must be a fat or an alcohol to ensure successful dissolution and absorption in the body. At Hemproutine, we use high quality MCT oil to accompany our CBD.
EDIBLES BASED ON CBD
A simple and straightforward way to consume CBD is through CBD-infused edibles, CBD that will be absorbed through the digestive tract. For pre-made edibles, the desired serving size and amount of CBD should be ingested, and the effects will kick in about an hour after taking, and last for about 6 hours.
CBD CREAMS, LOTIONS AND GELS
Applying CBD products directly to the skin with creams and lotions is a popular method for treating specific areas of the body. To do this, simply apply the cream to the part of the body where the treatment is desired. The cannabidiol is then slowly absorbed through the skin. It is recommended to apply the cream several times a day in order to achieve the desired effects. These occur approximately 1 hour after application and last between 6 and 8 hours. CBD can also have an antiseptic and anti-inflammatory effect. Various medical studies are being done to prove the effectiveness of it against various inflammatory skin diseases. We can, however, note that many patients have reported positive effects after using CBD creams.
VAPING CBD
Inhaling CBD via an e-cigarette is the fastest way to experience the effects. This is because CBD is absorbed through the lungs and quickly enters the bloodstream. However, vaping is the least accurate method of determining the amount of CBD consumed. Effects usually occur within minutes and can last up to 4 hours.
THE HISTORY OF CANNABIS IN POPULAR MEDICINE
For millennia, cannabis products have been used for therapeutic and cultural purposes in many cultures around the world. Cannabis has a rich history in folk medicine, dating back to 2700 BC. It is on this date, in China, that cannabis for medical use is mentioned for the first time in the pharmacopoeia of Emperor Shen Nung. It was also during this time that the founder of Chinese medicine, the so-called “Yellow Emperor” Huang Di, lived.
It was later, around 1400 BC, that cannabis first arrived in India, where it was used as medicine for various diseases. The first Indian surgeon, Sushruta Samhita recommended cannabis as an analgesic, aphrodisiac, against anxiety, sleep disorders and as a means of stimulating the appetite.
Cannabis use then made its way to Europe from West and South Asia. It was first mentioned in ancient Egypt around 1700 BC in a medical papyrus. This contained several cannabis-based recipes, for example for pain in the toes, fingers and against parasites. Around 650 BC, medicinal recipes based on cannabis flowers were also recorded among the Assyrian people. The whole plant is boiled, and then administered as a remedy for abdominal pain. The roots are also used as a remedy for depression and anxiety.
CANNABIS IN MEDICINE UP TO THE 20TH CENTURY
In the Middle Ages, medicine was mainly practiced by monks and nuns. Benedictine nun and polymath Hildegard von Bingen grew cannabis in her herb garden. In her text “Physica – Liber simplicis medicane”, she describes the healing powers of nature, and describes in particular the analgesic and digestive properties of the cannabis plant. It is also used for the local treatment of ulcers and wounds, bronchial diseases, stomach problems and nausea. This caused the rise of cannabis as a medical treatment in Europe, which proved successful until the end of the 19th century. It was at the end of the 19th century that cannabis preparations became established as medicines in Europe and America. Darmstadt-based pharmaceutical giant Merck
THE DISCOVERY OF THE ENDOCANNABINOID SYSTEM
Professor Raphael Mechoulam was instrumental in the discovery of the endocannabinoid system in the 1990s. This system is part of the nervous system and includes so-called cannabinoid receptors that can be influenced pharmacologically. While research on the system has progressed, much research is still needed to better understand the endocannabinoid system that can be influenced by cannabinoids such as CBD. It is believed that these can influence anxiety disorders, pain, sleep disturbances, appetite control, body temperature control, neuroprotection and the fight against cancer.
DECREASE IN INTEREST THEN REDISCOVERY OF THE MEDICINAL PLANT
At the beginning of the 20th century, natural products increasingly disappeared from the market and were gradually replaced by synthetic drugs. Cannabis has been increasingly replaced, including the introduction of opiates and aspirin chloral hydrate. This was mainly due to the fact that most doctors were skeptical of non-standardized drugs and their unexplored mechanisms of action.
In the middle of the 20th century, cannabis was finally banned for good because of THC, the psychoactive substance in cannabis, which could not be isolated at the time. The isolation of THC was first achieved in 1964 by scientists Yehiel Gaoini and Raphael Mechoulam. Since then, the medical use of cannabis and the use of CBD oil for pain has again increased significantly and a real boom in cannabis research has begun. But it wasn’t until the early 1990s that the body’s cannabinoid system was discovered.
