Marijuana and liver: did you know that cannabis has a positive effect on liver diseases?

Modified on: 09/05/2024

CANNABINOIDS, OR THE SUBSTANCES CONTAINED IN MARIJUANA (LEGAL AND NOT) ARE A CURE-ALL FOR THE LIVER.

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Legal weed, as you well know, offers numerous benefits to the body. CBD flowers, thanks to the cannabinoids that they contain (in particular thanks to CBD) is relaxing, pain-relieving, antidepressant … But not only that: it also positively affects liver diseases.

Are you skeptical?

Our statement is not far-fetched but is based on different scientific research (see the sources at the end of the article).

The first study we want to talk about was published in 2018 on the famous journal Liver International, which deals with promoting clinical studies related to hepatology.

The study concerning the positive effects of cannabis on the liver

The purpose of this study, carried out by numerous researchers from the University of Massachusetts, the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique of the University of Quebec and several hospitals (including the Howard County General Hospital), was to determine the effects of the use of cannabis on the incidence of liver disease in people who abuse of alcohol.

Researchers have investigated the health status of 319,514 patients aged 18 and over who had a past or present history of alcoholism.

In order to analyze the incidence of cannabinoids on liver diseases, the researchers, therefore, divided the patients into 3 groups:

• non-cannabis users (90.39%)
• non-dependent cannabis users (8.26%)
• dependent cannabis users (1.36%)

Based on the analyses carried out, it has been shown that alcohol consumers who also use marijuana have fewer chances of developing significant liver diseases (including, for example, the dreaded HCC hepatocarcinoma, a malignant liver tumor) compared to non-users.

Warning: this is not advice to abuse alcohol and prevent liver disease with marijuana. However, this is a way to show you how cannabinoids have positive effects on our body, even in the presence of harmful substances such as alcohol.

But the study published on Liver International is not the only research carried out on the relationship between cannabinoids and liver. We see below other investigations in this regard.

Read also: Here is bisabolol: benefits and properties of this terpene

Further studies on the benefits of cannabis on the liver: CBD protects from fatty liver disease.

According to a study conducted by researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, published by the journal Free Radical Biology and Medicine, “cannabidiol protects the liver from alcohol-induced steatosis”.

Liver steatosis, also called fatty liver, is a massive accumulation of fat in liver cells. This condition, which over time leads to cirrhosis, is often caused by alcohol abuse.

The CBD, according to the researchers’ analysis, is able to protect the liver avoiding the accumulation of fat as it favors particular mechanisms. These processes are as follows:

• the inhibition of oxidative stress,
• the increase in cell autophagy, or the elimination of cells that are not necessary or harmful to the body.

A further study shows how the CBD contained in marijuana can protect the liver from the damage caused by the excess of cadmium.

Cadmium damage to the liver and positive effects of CBD: here are the details on the study

The research, conducted by researchers at the King Faisal University (Saudi Arabia), was published in 2013 in the Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology.

The study, conducted in mice, demonstrates the protective effect of Cannabidiol against liver toxicity induced by a single dose of cadmium chloride (6.5 mg per kg).

Cannabidiol treatment (5 mg per kg once a day) was applied for five days starting three days before cadmium administration.

The CBD administered to the mice performed the following functions:

• significantly reduced serum alanine aminotransferase (intracellular enzyme present in the liver that increases in the presence of liver damage);
• suppressed hepatic lipid peroxidation, or the oxidative degradation of lipids;
• prevented the exhaustion of glutathione (which has antioxidant properties) and nitric oxide (the gas that allows cellular communication);
• favored the activity of catalase, a very important enzyme for our body;
• attenuated the level of cadmium in the liver tissue.

The histopathological examination also showed that the lesion of the liver tissue (caused by the administration of cadmium) was clearly improved by the treatment with CBD.

The researchers, therefore, concluded that cannabidiol can represent a potential protective substance of liver tissue from the toxic and harmful effects of cadmium.

This heavy metal is present in water, air and even in the earth’s crust and is often absorbed by agricultural crops (and consequently ingested by humans and animals).

Once taken, it is very difficult to dispose of (the time of disposal can go from 10 to 30 years) and in the most serious cases, it can lead to infections of the gastrointestinal tract, lung infections or even death.

Read also: What is cannabis tincture and how is it produced

Conclusions

The CBD, contained in high quantities in CBD cannabis, can be a great ally for the well-being of the liver and the prevention and control of liver pathologies, both in case of alcoholism and in case of ingestion of highly toxic substances such as cadmium.

So what are you waiting for?

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